Be sure to make it to the
end of this post to enter to win an exciting prize pack including fabulous
prizes such as a ribboned beret, a Paris coin bag, AND an eBook copy of
the featured book!! Also, come back
daily to interact with Wanda and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks for stopping
by! Wishing you lots of luck in this
fabulous giveaway!
Fragments of French, an
Unexpected
Journey of the Heart
by Wanda St. Hilaire
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Memoir (Travel)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
After
a harsh brush with her mortality, shadowed by a premature divorce, Wanda St.
Hilaire pledges to be true to her primary passion—living ardently through
travel. On the fateful day her life intersects with Jean-François, a charming
Frenchman, on a bustling street in Lisbon, every fiber of her being feels as
though she has finally entered the doorway to a magical world that she knew
existed since she was a young girl.
St.
Hilaire turns a complicated romantic ballet full of missteps into a collage of
people, places, and cultures. Fragments of French is an exquisitely detailed
travelogue of Portugal, Canada, France, and Mexico, filled with minor
characters who delight with their humanity. However, what really makes this
tale a standout is a gift for pacing and description to rival Tom Wolfe.
The
hero’s journey is not only for the characters of our favorite stories or
mythical legends. At some point, each of us receives the call to adventure.
Fate summons the hero; we can refuse the call, or step into something that will
turn our lives upside down, and potentially change everything we know to be
true.
From
feeling “completely disarmed, no fortress standing”, to embracing her
untethered strength, the author turns this account of living life out loud into
lessons for us all.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT FOUR:
French
words from my childhood pop into my head at opportune moments, surprising me.
On our family visits, my French grandfather whom, to my seven-year-old eyes,
looked like a wizened turtle, walked me to the cheese factory near his home.
Hand in hand, we would saunter ever so slowly, and he would mutter foreign
words to me. His horrid wife, Step grand-mère—the Wicked Witch of Winnipeg—made
the grandchildren speak only French in her presence, and I am oddly grateful to
her at this moment.
Jean-François
asks if I am concerned about our age difference. To my mind, age is determined
by the essence and energy of a person. I have known people who are biologically
thirty, yet exude the air of a person many decades older. I know my energy is
younger than my thirty-five years, and this is what concerns him, but the eight
years between us is as insignificant as dust in the wind.
The
castle looms over this ancient section of the city, making the evening more
dream-like. The cultural blend and integration of the inhabitants creates an
exotic atmosphere. With Brazilian, Latin, and African influences from the
former Portuguese colonies, I am moved by the cadence and archaic soul of the
music. My body involuntarily sways to each new rhythm, and I close my eyes to
breathe in the antiquity of my surroundings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOOK TRAILER:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR BIO:
Her
prime passion is the thrill of travel—of experiencing other cultures,
traditions, lifestyles, and languages—thus expanding her perspective.
Wanda St. Hilaire has a
predilection and passion for all things Latin, and she believes life is too
short not to do what you love, where you love. She spends time writing in
Mexico for inspiration, and to escape the frozen landscapes of Alberta.
Through
writing, St. Hilaire shares what she’s learned from the high peaks of adventure
and love, to the dark valleys of illness and heartbreak. Her mission is to help
people overcome the self, and tap into their wise inner guidance system. Her
wish is to inspire others to live true to their unique and beautiful nature.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CONNECT WITH WANDA:
Website:
Website:
Blog:
Email:
destinoex@aol.com
Facebook:
Twitter:
Pinterest:
LinkedIn:
Goodreads Author Page:
Goodreads Book Page:
Amazon Author Page:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AMAZON BOOK BUY
LINKS:
Amazon Kindle eBook:
Amazon Paperback:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY INFO:
Wanda will be awarding a ribboned beret &
Paris coin bag with an E-book of Fragments of French to a randomly drawn winner
via Rafflecopter during the tour.
International offer.
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this
blog. This does not cost you anything,
it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored
by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish
Promotions. Prizes are given away by the
sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish
Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteWanda ~ Good morning! Welcome to FAB! It is so great to have you here! Congrats on your new book and good luck on the book tour! :) Also, congrats on being a survivor!! My mom is also a two-time cancer survivor (breast and ovarian) and is actually at cancer camp in Montana right now (her second year) with sixty other woman who are also going through breast cancer and/or are survivors!! And I am BRCA-2 Positive plus with family history, etc. I am calculated to have like an 84% chance of getting at least one cancer in my lifetime... So yeah... But I was reading your blog and I think it’s great that you wrote a book on it and continue to share your experiences!!! Keep up the good work and I wish you continued good health!!! #fightlikeagirl :)
ReplyDeleteHello Ally!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for hosting my latest book. Oh ... and thank you on the survivorship. Readers of What To Do After "I'm sorry, it's cancer" have found a lot of inspiration and ideas outside of mainstream medicine. Lots on the psychology of wellness. And if you have the BRCA-2, you may find it very interesting in regard to epigenetics and we down regulate or turn on the gene and how WE can have power over it.
I hope your readers come along with me on the journey in Fragments of French! It's quite the tale.
Thanks again,
Wanda