Here's an opportunity to win an ebook of my latest novel, "New Horizons," the third book in the John Ross Boomer Lit series.
Unfortunately, the contest is open only to those who live in the United States. That is Amazon's contest rules, not mine. I'd prefer for it to be available to anyone, anywhere.
Click here to enter. There are no strings attached. Easy as pie.
The novel follows the trails of baby boomers John Ross and his wife, Sally, as they journey to Budapest on a guided tour. It turns into a memorable trip in many ways. They also must contend with what is happening back home.
I do hope you'll let others know about the giveaway, so please share with other readers.
Good luck!
Until the next time . . .
I was glancing at my posts and realized that while I gave progress reports on "New Horizons" the past few months, I never announced that it had been published.
Well (drum roll, please), family, friends, readers, and other interested folks, "New Horizons" was published May 1 by Wings ePress.
I suppose it slipped my mind because I was traveling across Greece from April 21 to May 3. And then it took a few days to recover from the trip including getting my body adjusted from the seven-hour time difference.
But as I said, it's out there, in print and e-book format. It's available at the Wings website as well as reliable Amazon.
The novel, the third book in the "John Ross Boomer Lit Series," is about John and Sally Ross's 10-day guided tour to historic Budapest. It's a wild and wacky trip as they meet a variety of traveling companions to make for a memorable journey.
And they also have to deal with what is going on back in the States as best they can. Nothing is ever easy for John and Sally.
You can read an excerpt here.
Until the next time . . .
My wife and I spent nearly two weeks on a guided tour in Greece, viewing some wondrous sites across this beautiful country.
Despite seeing impressive places such as the ancient Acropolis, the Oracle of Delphi, the majestic Meteora monasteries, the ruins at the Temple of Zeus, the enchanting island of Corfu, and the picturesque seaside port of Nafplio, the experience was marred by a handful of lowlifes we encountered on the Metro in Athens.
Pickpockets.
We were assaulted twice by a group of losers. Fortunately, for us, they only managed to steal my old cellphone. But it could have been worse.
I managed to prevent one of the thieves from taking the wallet from my zippered front pocket. They did unzip my wife's handbag but only managed a passport holder (without my passport) that they tossed aside.
My wife was physically assaulted when one of the thugs pressed his body against her, whom she promptly pushed him back.
I didn't take their crap, shoving them off and giving them a tongue-lashing that could probably be heard throughout the car. They ran off when the door opened. Yeah, they're cowards as well.
We did manage to find security and they were helpful in directing us to the stop where our hotel was located.
I'm writing this because I believe Athens needs to clean up its act or it'll start losing much-needed tourism dollars. I can tell you now that I'd never travel to Barcelona because of its pickpocket problem.
I caution travelers to be on the lookout for pickpockets. They blend in. They're not always easy to spot except that they generally work in pairs or group, trying to distract you and then stealing your wallet, purse, passports, and other items.
This was our fourth trip to Europe so we weren't naive about the possibility of it happening to us. I do believe we were spared a worse outcome because we had educated ourselves to be on the lookout for these subhumans.
So beware of greasy hands in Greece. It's a shame that people can make the effort to travel across the world to this nation but leave with the memory of being attacked by common criminals. It can happen to you.
Check this post from The Savvy Backpacker for tips to avoid pickpockets as well as European cities where pickpockets are a big problem.
One more thing. We intend to return to Europe. We're not going to let the petty pickpockets win. I just hope that police crackdown even more on these creeps.
Until the next time . . .
Unfortunately, the contest is open only to those who live in the United States. That is Amazon's contest rules, not mine. I'd prefer for it to be available to anyone, anywhere.
