Wednesday, February 27, 2013

'Woman of Substance' by Annette Bower Book Tour & Review

Woman of Substance
by Anette Bower
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BLURB:

"You will never understand what it means to be fat.” With those words, grad student Robbie Smith begins the Fat-Like-Me project. In order to support her thesis, she puts on a fat suit to measure people’s reactions to the new her.

Accused of embezzling funds, Professor Jake Proctor returns home to spend quality time with the only father he has ever known. There, he meets an intriguing overweight woman who reminds him of his late grandmother. She’s witty, charming, and cares deeply for those around her, including his dying grandfather.

When Robbie meets Jake while she’s in disguise, she deceives him for all the right reasons. But how long can she maintain the deception before Jake discovers that she is not who he believes her to be?

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Read an excerpt:
Robbie in her disguise meets Jake Proctor for the first time and there are not good impressions shared.

“Robbie’s cheeks burned. “You, you think I’m asking Frank for money?” She forced herself to stand straight and gripped her hands so she wouldn’t brush at the dirt clinging to the front of her jacket and kept both feet on the ground so she wouldn’t kick him in the shins. These solid shoes would give him a good bruise.

“For starters, you look as if you could use some clean clothes. There’s bread on the bench. And there’s the open wallet and a frail, old, man.” His clipped words and flashing eyes when he nodded toward each item left no room for doubt as to exactly what he thought.

Struggling between her outrage and the genuine concern in Jake’s eyes, she said, “Ah, Sherlock Holmes, I presume.” Nincompoop. Just goes to show a well-fitted jacket and height can disguise real character, too.

“No.” He put his hands behind his back and jutted his chin forward. “I’m a concerned grandson.”

“Stop it, both of you,” Frank growled. “Here’s the picture of Mabel I wanted to show you before Jake turned up out of the blue.” He handed his billfold to Robbie. Behind yellowed plastic was the image of a woman with dark curls smiling at the camera holding a baby wrapped in a blanket.

“That’s our Mabel.” He looked from Jake to Robbie.

“Yes.” Jake stood behind Frank and his hands hung loosely at his side.

Robbie felt a sense of relief. She turned toward Jake and pointed at the baby. “You?”

“No.” Jake sounded resigned. Robbie understood that sometimes a person just has to allow the story to be told.”
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**My thoughts**

Being a larger woman, I found myself relating to Robin a bit more than Robbie. I have heard all of the same things, only much more brutally than Robin ever has to experience. I also related to Jake's struggle in saying goodbye to his grandfather, having recently lost both my grandmother and my father. This story became much more personal to me than I had thought it would when I signed up for the tour.

I wasn't sure how to take Jake at first. I didn't care for his opinions of Robin. I found him condescending at times. And then I realized that he had some stereotypical thoughts that illustrated how a lot of people react. I loved his grandfather, Frank. I also got a kick out of how his name symbolized his true nature. He was the voice of reason that seemed to have quite an impact on both Robbie/Robin and Jake. The time frame in which this book took place seemed quite short for the story and Robbie's experiment, but I don't think she could have maintained the charade much longer. Plus, Christmas just needed to happen the way it did.

I think there are some good, subtle (and a few not so subtle) lessons to be had in this book. It took me a couple of chapters to get into it, but then I couldn't tear myself away.

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Buy link: Amazon 

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Annette Bower writes about women in family and women in love and women’s quest for love. Her short stories are published in magazines and anthologies in Canada, United States and in the United Kingdom.

Her first sweet contemporary romance Moving On, A Prairie Romance is e-published by XoXo Publishing™. Her second novel which is a blend of sweet romance and women’s fiction, Woman of Substance is e-published by Soul Mate Publishing.

Annette Bower lives and writes stories from a high rise where she can see the immediate hustle and bustle of downtown Regina and experience the changes in the grain fields throughout the Saskatchewan seasons.




Twitter: @bowerannette


Author of Moving On - A Prairie Romance on Amazon \ XoXo Publishers \ AReBookStrand

Author of Christmas Wishes with XoXo Publishers on Amazon \ XoXo Publishers \ ARe \



Annette will be awarding a $25 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, and a $10 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn host. Follow the tour for more chances to win!

29 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Good morning Andrea Coventry,
      Thank you for taking the chance and reviewing Woman of Substance.
      I appreciate you sharing your personal association to Jake's loss of Frank and both Robbie and Jake's emotional growth.
      The loss of a grandmother brings the leadership of the family closer to the women in the succeeding generations and helps us realize how much wisdom we need to gain. The loss of a father must be like losing a blade on a rudder, you have to learn to steer a path that will be forever different.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  2. I appreciate your thoughts & found them helpful thank you!!

    marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good morning Mary,
      Thank you for stopping at Uplifting Reads and discovering Andrea's helpful thoughts. Reviewers take chances with books and authors with only the blurb. Then they continue to read and share their reactions to the story to help other readers make choices. I'm pleased that Andrea's comments have helped you think about Robbie/Robin, Jake and Frank's journey.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  3. Great excerpt and Jake should learn to be less suspicious :)

    moonsurfer123(AT)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anas,
      Thank you for stopping in at Uplifting Reads. I'll give you a spoiler alert, Jake does learn to be less suspicious in the end. I use this example I read about in a Reader's Digest too many years ago.
      "As a woman prepared a roast for dinner she cut the end off her roast.
      Her daughter asked her why she did that.
      She said, "Because my mother did."
      The woman decided to phone her mother and ask why she always cut the end off her roast.
      The woman's mother said, "Because the roast didn't fit my pan."
      I think we adopt many views without understanding the reasons.
      Thank you for your comment.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  4. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! It sounds like a sweet book. I really wanna read it !

    andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Andra Lyn,
      Thank you sharing Andrea's generosity in sharing her thoughts. I hope you do have the opportunity in joining Robbie/Robin, Jake and Frank too on their journey.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  5. I think too much emphases is made on a person's body. People come in all shapes and sizes. The book sounds like a good read.

    Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Ingeborg,
      I agree with you. Many in society do appear to place a great deal of emphasis on body image. And it isn't just larger shapes but some times thinner shapes or shorter and taller.
      My friend has a 6 month old who is tiny in comparison to other babies her age. The mom is constantly under suspicion of not feeding her daughter enough food.
      We have a great deal to learn about accepting people from the inside out.
      Yours truly,
      Annette Bower

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  6. Good review, thank you for sharing your opinion, I think the experiment idea is interesting, though it seems a bit strange of a project.

    shadowrunner1987 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Ami,
      It was an unusual project to carry out. There have been a few TV personalities who have tried this very thing. I believe a reporter tried it and she was in tears before her stint was up. It is one of those things that can be done. I know that car manufactures do research with people in braces to adjust their movement limitations to design better automobiles. And others have even just tried to travel streets in a wheelchair to face mobility issues. Sometimes it takes being there to get a better understanding.
      Thank you for stopping by and commenting on Andrea's review.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  7. This book sounds great, is there an audio book version of it as well?

    emiliana25(at)web(dot)de

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Emiliana25,
      Sorry there isn't an audio version at this time. I should check with my publisher to see if this is a possibility, because of course there are sight challenged individuals who enjoy listening to books as well as people who commute. I used to live about 25 miles from the city and I listened to many books on the way to work or university or meetings.
      Thank you for asking.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  8. Thanks for the great review. It sounds like there are very many important lessons being taught in this book

    fencingromein at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Shannon R.

    I agree that Andrea shared a wonderful review. I know I've usually learned something from every book I've read. I've said this in an interview recently, so if you've read it, I apologize for repeating myself. But here goes, when I was a young mom we lived outside the city. And if I was having a particularly hard day, my husband would stop after work on his way out of the city and pick me up a series romance. I learned a lot about love and what it takes to stay in love.
    Thank you for stopping at Uplifting Reads and leaving a comment.
    Yours truly,
    Annette

    ReplyDelete
  10. thanks for the chance to win!

    hense1kk@cmich.edu

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dear Anonymous,

    You are welcome for the chance to win.

    Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
    Yours truly,
    Annette

    ReplyDelete
  12. Andrea...What a great, thoughtful review. As a reader, I appreciate an honest review. I'm also a "big girl" and think this book might speak to me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Catherine Lee,
      I agree Andrea did provide a great and thoughtful review.
      Thank you for sharing your "big girl" shape. Thank goodness we all come in various shapes and sizes. I think the most important thing is learning to be and love who we are. Some days it is easier than others but on those days we reach for friends.
      Thank you Catherine Lee for stopping by and reading Andrea's review.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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    2. You're welcome, Annette. I wish everyone appreciated the variety of all different shapes and sizes.

      Delete
    3. Hello Catherine Lee,
      Me too!

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  13. This is indeed an interesting subject matter. Not many books deal with an over weight heroine; even if she is just pretending. I am looking forward to reading how this story unfolds!

    justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Chelsea B.
      Thank you for stopping by Uplifting Reads and sharing Andrea's review of Woman of Substance.
      I hope you have the opportunity to share Robbie/Robin and Jake's journey through the pages.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

      Delete
  14. Very nice review about the characters.

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello bn100
      I agree that Andrea gave the characters careful consideration in her review of Robbie, Jake and Frank.
      Thank you for stopping in at Uplifting Reads and leaving a comment.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  15. It was an interesting idea for a story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Teena,
      Thank you for stopping in at Andrea's Uplifting Reads and leaving a comment. I'm glad that you found Woman of Substance and interesting idea for a story. I enjoy exploring something on a different edge and discovering the characters who will fall in love with each other.
      Yours truly,
      Annette

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  16. Good Morning Everyone,
    The draw is now closed. I have all names to be placed in the random draw. The winner will be placed on the Goddess Fish Promo.com http://www.goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.ca/ and on my blog. www.annettebower.com/blog

    Thank you for participating.
    Yours truly,
    Annette

    ReplyDelete