Thursday, September 24, 2009

The Thursday Excerpt - Patti O’Donoghue

Today's excerpt comes from an author I've known for several years now, Patti O’Donoghue. She's a bundle of energy, too!

Patti wanted to give everyone a little sample of her books...

The Stanhope Trilogy
By Patti O’Donoghue


Whether you are an armchair reader or an adventurous traveler, you’ll love the trials and tribulations of Celia and Goldie in The Stanhope Trilogy. The girls, ready to escape dull and boring Sandy Run, North Carolina, end up in the far-flung islands of the Western Pacific Ocean—Guam, Saipan, Rota. Although these islands seem more at home in a World War II history book, the girls head for Guam in search for shipwreck and treasure.
What do they know about living in the “real world” they’re so anxious to get into? What do they know about paying bills? Or buying cars and insurance? Or renting their own apartment? In fact, do they even know where Guam USA is? Or how to get there?
You’ll find out in these three fun, fast-paced books. Live the adventure with Celia and Goldie as they learn that treasure isn’t necessarily made of gold.

Book One: Celia
Thirteen-year-old Cecilia Anne Stanhope watches the crash of the small aircraft carrying her parents. This tragedy changes her from a child of privilege to a poor orphan with only one living relative—Air Force Captain Anita Carter. Within a month of her parents’ death, Celia is transported from the beautiful woodlands of eastern North Carolina to Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Does she like it? No. Is she nice about it? No!
Cecilia does not like her aunt and her aunt does not like Celia. It's a regular standoff between two strong-willed females. Mix in her aunt's boyfriend, Captain Michael Howland, who tries to be nice to Celia--maybe too nice--and the fireworks spark.
What Celia needs more than anything is a friend. Then she meets the golden one, Regina "Goldie" O'Brien. Talk about double trouble! These two misplaced Southern girls are it!

Book Two: Where America’s Day Begins
Cecilia Anne “Celia” Stanhope and co-conspirator Regina “Goldie” O’Brien are at it again! They’re back in Sandy Run, North Carolina, and Celia learns that her dead parents left a trust fund of more than $100,000—a detail that her guardian, Captain Anita Carter, failed to mention.
Trouble is Celia is eighteen years old and supposed to wait until she’s twenty-one to get the money! Does she want to wait? Will her aunt terminate the trust early? You guessed it, NO.
Celia cooks up a plan to get her aunt to release the trust funds. But where to go? The girls spin the globe and settle on a tiny dot in the western Pacific Ocean, Guam, USA, as the place. Now the girls have the place and soon Celia will have the money.
Mix in discovery, treasure and tales of shipwreck--and Celia's belief that treasure is sitting in the sand and waiting for them to find it--and you'll see how very misplaced these two southern girls can get!

Book Three: The Wreck
Hey there! This is Celia Stanhope with my very best friend, Goldie O’Brien. We used to breathe in the fresh salt air at Topsail Beach, North Carolina, and gaze across the lovely Atlantic Ocean. We wished we could find shipwrecks filled with treasure.
We dreamed of riches and, of course, we wanted it to be easy—just picking up gold doubloons off the ocean floor. We wanted to get out of small-town Sandy Run. We wanted to get away from part-time jobs and adults telling us what to do.
Be careful what you wish for. Life can get harder than you’d ever imagine, and your small town will look mighty good. Without support from those people you want to get away from, it’s possible that you may end up living on the streets—homeless!
Find out how two misplaced southern girls from eastern North Carolina end up on the islands of Guam and Rota in the western Pacific. Will we find the German ship, S.M.S. Cormoran and its treasure?
Perhaps real treasure is not made of gold.

What readers of The Stanhope Trilogy are saying:
I have put down Harry Potter and started Celia. I immediately felt like a next door neighbor, one that had known her since she was a toddler! Let me know when the next book is done! ~ Rita, New Bern, NC
I look forward to finding out what happens next! ~ Jeff, Mount Olive, NC
I just finished Celia and Goldie’s second adventure, Where America’s Day Begins. WONDERFUL!! I don’t understand how you can leave me hanging like that. I absolutely cannot wait for the third book. Do you actually believe you’re going to be able to stop at three? ~Ashley, Mount Olive, NC
I’ll be waiting breathlessly for book three! ~Jeremiah, Bloomington, IN
Can’t wait to get my hands on your next book. ~ Ann, Goldsboro, NC
Just finished reading Where America’s Day Begins. It is great—as was Book One! Now I am anxiously awaiting Book Three of the Trilogy. ~ Martha, Charlotte, NC
NOW I HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE NEXT BOOK! I REALLLLLLY ENJOYED THIS ONE. GREAT FLASHBACK TO THE ISLANDS! ~ Monica, Knob Noster, MO—formerly of Guam, USA
We are half way through Where America’s Day Begins and can’t wait to find out what happens next. My granddaughters are already asking me to keep on the look out for the next book. ~Brenda, Goldsboro, NC
Love the books! ~ Bill, Morehead City, NC
Great second book – and can’t wait to read book three! ~ Kim, Charleston, SC
I look forward to reading your entire trilogy!! ~ Mike, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska


Website -
The Stanhope Trilogy
Buy the books at -
Authorhouse 1-888-280-7715 (AuthorHouse toll-free book order hotline) and online at Amazon, B&N, & Borders
Also available through Ingram and Baker & Taylor

Upcoming by Patti O’Donoghue, a modern fairytale:
Princess Elizabeth Solves the Big Problem
Meet Princess Elizabeth. On her very royal birthday, her very royal parents, the king and queen, make a very royal decree. Henceforth Princess Elizabeth is to rule over a small dynasty, The Kingdom of Olive Mountain, where by a very royal rule, people eat olives. In fact, they eat a lot of olives. It’s their staple food, which is all well and good. The only problem is that each and every last one of the townsfolk on Olive Mountain are tired of eating olives. Granted, it’s the way it has always been. Folks in Turkey Town gobble turkey. Those in Strawberry Station savor strawberries. Of course, all those dwellers on Sweet Potato Square love their sweet potatoes—or do they? After consulting with her father, Princess Elizabeth decides to find out. It seems to her that if you take a problem and approach it in a whole new way, something is bound to change. In this case, Princess Elizabeth is determined to come up with a better plan and a different menu.
Published by Book Surge.com, November 2009 release date.

5 comments:

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

Is this an NC writer? Sounds intriguing!

Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Yes she is! Eastern NC and not too far from me. We've even done a signing together.

Helen Ginger said...

The Stanhope books sound like great ones for young girls. And it sounds like she's having a lot of success with them. Congrats!

Helen
Straight From Hel

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Thanks everyone!

Arlee Bird said...

Interesting to find this review and you might be surprised to see me here a couple years after the fact.
I was doing a search of "Authorhouse" and the new more personalized Google directed me to this post.

Strangely enough, I was at the dentist this morning and the hygienist who cleaned my teeth was talking the entire time (thank goodness because it kept me distracted) about his mother, who had just published a book through Authorhouse. He provided me with some very interesting insight.

Just thought I'd share that tidbit about where Google can lead us sometimes.

I'll be trying to get this author to do a guest post on my blog--speaking of the topic I discussed on Stephen Tremp's blog the other day.

Lee
Wrote By Rote