Spotlight: The Rx Factor by J. Thomas Shaw

Title: The Rx Factor
Author: J. Thomas Shaw
Publication Date: May 2012
Publisher: Langdon Street Press
Blog Tour: Pump Up Your Book

Five years after the death of his wife and children, Ryan Matthews is living alone with memories of his failed career in cancer research when fellow scientist Jordan Carver catches his eye. Preparing for a move to Mexico, Jordan plans to open a clinic where terminal patients will have affordable access to experimental medication. Despite Ryan’s skepticism on her willingness to bypass the FDA drug approval process, he is intrigued by Jordan’s passion and determination to provide alternative care to terminal patients. But when a violent explosion leaves the small Bahamian island of Exuma on edge, Ryan knows his life has once again been forever altered.

Drawn together by circumstance, attraction, and shared ambition, Ryan and Jordan become united in their international quest for the truth. The two embark on an explosive thrill ride ending in Washington, D.C., where the couple unravels the country’s best-kept secret: the government will stop at nothing to maintain the American way of life, with heartbreak and sickness for all.



About the Author:

J. Thomas Shaw was born in Quincy, Illinois, and attended the University of Oklahoma and Illinois State University. Following graduation, he moved to Chicago and had a highly successful professional career. He now resides in Southern California with his wife and their two children. Prior to his relocation to California, Mr. Shaw lived for six years in Durham, North Carolina and two years on a ranch outside of Cotopaxi, Colorado. He has traveled extensively throughout the Bahamas’, Caribbean and Mexico. The scenes throughout The Rx Factor take place in the various locations that the author has lived or experienced in his travels. Throughout the process of writing The RX Factor, the author consulted with his good friend, Johnny Powers Ph.D.

Dr. Powers holds a bachelor degree in Chemistry from Wake Forest University, a masters in Chemical Engineering from Clemson University, a PhD in Biochemical Engineering from North Carolina State University and an MBA from the Duke University Fuqua School of Business. Dr. Powers has over 20 years experience in the biomedical field, with extensive experience in developing and marketing new diagnostic tests for the early detection and management of cancer. Dr. Powers most recently served as the President of TriPath Oncology; a North Carolina-based biotechnology company focused on developing innovative medical tests for ovarian, cervical and breast cancer. TriPath imaging was sold to a major multi-national medical diagnostics company in 2006. In his career, Dr. Powers has dealt extensively with the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and various government agencies, and has published numerous scientific research papers and holds medical patents in both the US and Canada. He now resides in the New England area with his wife and two children.

Connect Online:

• The Rx Factor website
• J. Thomas Shaw website 
• J. Thomas Shaw on Twitter
• J. Thomas Shaw on Facebook

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Related articles

• Book Review - The RX Factor (themoderatevoice.com)

Wordless Wednesday: Lion

My husband has been trying to get a good picture of a lion at the Indianapolis Zoo for a long time but the camera kept focusing on the fence. He finally managed to figure out the manual settings on his new camera and got this great shot.

Wordless Wednesday is hosted by Create With Joy. Check out this week's linky for more great photos.





 Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Along For The Ride with Author Genevieve Graham (Guest Post)

Today Library Girl Reads and Reviews welcomes Genevieve Graham as she drops by on her blog tour for Sound of the Heart. Be sure to read all the way to the end of the post for more information about Sound of the Heart and a giveaway to celebrate the book. I asked Genevieve to tell us about how her characters came to be and this is what she had to say:

Once upon a time a young woman named Maggie moved in my mind. I’d never met her before, had no idea where she came from, only felt compelled to let her lead me wherever she wanted me to go. I’d never written a book before, and I really had no idea how to start, but that didn’t seem to matter. I sat in front of the computer, let my mind relax, and in she came.

It was the most intense experience, getting to know Maggie. On one hand, I had to be completely open to the story she was passing on, which to me means I have to basically be meditating. On the other hand I had to stay emotionally strong as she dragged me through hell with her. Along the way, she told me about Andrew, the boy of whom she’d always dreamed. And the next day, when I sat at my computer, I practically vibrated with adrenaline as I experienced Andrew fighting for his life in the bloody Battle of Culloden.

This first book became “Under the Same Sky,” the story of how Andrew and Maggie communicate their entire lives through dreams, helping each other survive though they lived thousands of miles apart. And when dreams are no longer enough, Andrew must cross the Atlantic and brave the unknown colonies in his quest to finally find her in the flesh.

Creating “Under the Same Sky” was exhilarating and exhausting. Not only was the story heart-wrenching yet romantic, the whole experience of researching for the times, then editing the manuscript to make it a fulfilling read, then querying for an agent … I was ready for a long nap after all that. But it was not to be.

Berkley not only wanted the first book, but they wanted a second book, a “companion novel” to go with it. But how? I’d lived through Maggie and Andrew so long, and their story had finished (for now, at least). This first experience was incredible, but the idea of trying to come up with something new boggled my mind.

Then Dougal, the brother Andrew had assumed was killed at Culloden, appeared. I’d been trying for a couple of days to write a character, to make up some kind of direction, but I only ended up with my head in my hands, driving my husband crazy with my whining. It was no use. I wasn’t going to find a plot or characters or anything. What had I gotten myself into? What was I going to do?

“Leave it to me, lass,” Dougal whispered, and I let him carry me away.

I’d seen Dougal in Andrew’s memories, and I knew how connected the brothers were, but I hadn’t known Dougal would have such a compelling story to tell in “Sound of the Heart”. Not only that, but Dougal was such a different character from his brooding, introspective brother, I found myself typing funny scenes and conversations I’d never imagined in the earlier, darker story. Once he brought me to the muddy field where he’d been taken prisoner along with hundreds of other Scots after the battle, I dove into researching what had happened to those men and women and realized he was going to have to be even stronger than I’d thought. The history of those P.O.W.s was miserable and often very short. But not Dougal. He would survive. Through research I found the possible paths he could take, then I let him show me the way. I admit I was privy to a secret he didn’t know, and when that twist occurred about halfway through “Sound of the Heart,” I loved seeing his reaction. I also loved watching him fall in love, and I felt his agony when she was ripped from his side. What choice did he have but to get back on that path, doing whatever he could to find her again? That only led to more adventures—for both of them.

When people ask what the toughest part of writing is for me, I always say it’s creating plot. I love getting in the minds of characters, experiencing the settings and goings-on from inside their minds. But when I sit down and try to plan, well, suffice to say it’s not always a pretty sight. I’m so lucky my characters let me ride their coattails. They live through amazing adventures, and it’s pure magic to be invited along for the ride.

About the Author:

Genevieve Graham graduated from the University of Toronto in 1986 with a Bachelor of Music in Performance (playing the oboe). While on a ski vacation in Alberta, she met her future husband in a chairlift lineup and subsequently moved to Calgary to be with him. They have recently settled in a small, peaceful town in Nova Scotia with their two beautiful daughters. Writing became an essential part of Genevieve’s life a few years ago, when she began to write her debut novel, Under the Same Sky. The companion novel, Sound of the Heart, will be in stores May 1, 2012.

CONNECT ONLINE

www.genevievegraham.com

www.facebook.com/GenevieveGrahamAuthor

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4505583.Genevieve_Graham

twitter.com/GenGrahamAuthor

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Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Related articles

• "Under the Same Sky" by Genevieve Graham (bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.com)

Wordless Wednesday: Sister Love

Elizabeth feeding Victoria for the very first time.

Wordless Wednesday is hosted by Create with Joy. Check out this week's post to see more wonderful pictures.




Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Yes! Energy by Loral Langemeier

Title: Yes! Energy The Equation to Do Less, Make More
Author: Loral Langemeier
Publication Date:  February 2012
Publisher: Hay House, Inc.
Source: Amazon Vine
Website: www.yesenergybook.com 

Loral Langemeier is best known as a financial expert. She created her own multimillion-dollar company, Live Out Loud, Inc, and teaches others to create wealth through her books and workshops. In Yes! Energy: The Equation to Do Less, Make More , Langemeier focuses on the process of creating the energy and forward movement that allows her to accomplish so much without working harder or longer. She formats this process as an actual mathematical looking equation though there is actually no math involved. Langemeier admits that she and her friend used to call this energy "the gift" when they noticed people who just seemed to have the confidence to move forward with ease into any project. Now she claims that everyone can develop this "gift" which is simply a new way of generating energy and moving into a new conversation.

While the book says this Yes! Energy can be applied to all areas of life in order to Do Less and Have More, Langemeier's examples do tend to focus on wealth and business examples because that is her area of expertise. She frequently references being the CEO of your own life which does sound pretty appealing. At least I think it will sound appealing to most people until they realize it means actually taking total responsibility for their lives and their decisions instead of being able to make excuses and place blame for their circumstances on other people and events. Being the CEO of one's own life means having the drive to go after what you truly want in life instead of just being along for the ride. Langemeier gives you the choice to play big or play small with your life but she clearly believes big is the way to go if you want to have what you want out of life and enjoy the process of getting it.

Langemeier's energy equation results in Extreme Optimism and Energy which spills into all areas of life. Her process includes changing the conversation, faith, certainty, confidence, dreams, gifts, team, and sequencing. The book goes through the energy equation step by step with sections focusing on each of the aspects of the equation. The book is well organized and breaks down the equation into easily digestible sections. Langemeier provides specific examples in each section of how she has applied this aspect of the equation to her own life or instances when she didn't follow through and things got off track. I love that she included these 'negative' examples as well because it shows that there are road blocks along the way and that even someone using this process who seems to have it all together does hit snags along the way. The trick, as Langemeier shows, is to adjust and keep moving forward instead of letting these bumps derail the entire project.

The book is well formatted with good use of bold headers, text boxes, and lists. Each section ends with some thought exercises to help the reader process the information and see how it is relevant to their own life. Langemeier also provides ideas for next steps to take to move forward in creating forward movement in life.

Overall, Yes! Energy is an interesting look at how we can change our thinking and make better use of our skills to make a better life but I don't know that it is realistic to say that everyone can use this process to create a wealth building business. I think that takes an initial effort and drive that many people simply aren't willing to expend and many people would rather make excuses than be fully responsible for their own lives.


Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.