Giveaway Time – Enter To Win A Signed Copy Of “Dancing To An Irish Reel”

July 16, 2015 by Irish American Mom 85 Comments

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Dancing To An Irish Reel is an intriguing novel about a single American female, Hailey, who leaves the record business in Los Angeles, and relocates to Connemara on the west coast of Ireland.

There she meets her love interest, Liam Hennessy, a traditional Irish musician, who in true Irish fashion is scared witless at the prospect of love.

Claire Fullerton previously shared her experiences of living in Ireland with us, and has graciously offered a signed copy of her book as a prize for one lucky reader of Irish American Mom.

But before I share the details of how to enter this giveaway, let’s first learn a little more about Hailey and Liam….

Dancing To An Irish Reel:

To whet your reading appetite, here’s a quick synopsis of the book from Amazon:

“On sabbatical from her job in the LA record business, Hailey takes a trip to Ireland for the vacation of a lifetime. What she finds is a job offer too good to turn down.

Her new job comes with one major complication—Liam Hennessey. He’s a famous Irish musician whose entire life has revolved around performing. And Hailey falls in love with him. Although Liam’s not so sure love is in the cards for him, he’s not willing to push her away completely.

And so begins Hailey’s journey to a colorful land that changes her life, unites her with friends more colorful than the Irish landscape, and gives her a chance at happiness she’s never found before.”

Spiddal, County Galway — Spiddal County Galway one of the rural Irish settings in <em>Dancing To An Irish Reel<em>

Image Credit

Introducing Liam:

Dancing To An Irish Reel is written from Hailey’s point of view, the reader being privy to Hailey’s thoughts and aspirations, as she attempts to navigate the mixed up signals of an awkward courtship with an Irish man who lives with his mammy and daddy.

Here’s a little excerpt from the book introducing us to Liam …..

“At 27-years-old, Liam lived with his parents in the house in which he grew up. He was a world-class Irish traditional musician that traveled often to places like Germany, Austria and New Zealand. He was in demand as a player in touring bands because he was a master at playing the button accordion. As such, he was more than a musician: he was the bearer of a torch that represented the history of an old culture. He brought the language of Irish music to regions that otherwise would have never been enlightened.

Being an Irish traditional musician is a feat not easily arrived at. Rather, it is a feat painstakingly achieved. Most of the tunes in a traditional player’s repertoire have been memorized through listening and repeated execution, as opposed to memorization by reading musical scores. Traditional music has been passed down through generational lines, and with Liam’s family, there had been no interruption. His father was a player, and the world in which Liam grew up was one of constant exposure to traditional music as if it were a language. I came to realize much later that Liam’s first language was music, his second language was Irish, and his third was English.

“So, you must be another American looking for their roots, then,” Liam stated.

If that was a question, then it’s a fair one, I thought.

“Actually, I’m working at the Galway Music Center,” I said, then I followed with my poetry aspirations, hoping to impress upon him I was not just passing through.”

….. I like him already, even after just two paragraphs ….

Galway:

Here’s a little excerpt from the book, where the author describes Galway, in poetic language that appeals deeply to my Celtic soul …..

“There is a feel about Galway you can wear around your shoulders like a cloak. It hangs in the air with its dampness; it walks the cobblestone streets and stands in the doorways of its gray stone buildings. It blows in with the mist from the Atlantic and lingers incessantly at every corner. I have never been able to walk the streets of Galway without feeling some unnamed presence accompanying me.”

Musicians:

Or how about this beautiful piece of prose as Hailey describes musicians …..

“There is a secret language musicians speak that does away with the need for articulation because it is intuitive and telepathic at its core…I felt as if I were in an insular bubble, privy to the secret internal mechanisms of a musician’s rarified gift…”

Praise For Claire’s Writing:

Claire Fullerton has garnered high praise for her writing, especially her deep and thoughtful insights into the nuances of Irish culture. Here are some snippets from the Amazon reviews that caught my eye …..

Claire Fullerton - Author — Claire Fullerton Author of <em>Dancing To An Irish Reel<em>

“What drew me into Claire Fullerton’s book was the fresh and reflective narrative sung to us by her protagonist, Hailey, an American young woman quite suddenly immersed in an Irish culture so rich in rural tradition and language nuance that it almost seems as if she has been dropped into a previous century. Her love interest with the beautiful but conflicted Irish musician Liam seems but a subplot to the deeper story of Hailey’s budding romance with the Irish people, culture, and countryside.”

~ Judith Ingram

These reviews describe the book as a celebration of hope, friendship and discovery. Poetic prose create an alluring story and a beautiful dance of the heart.

“Dancing to an Irish Reel is also a lyrically written story. Its language is fluid and beautifully descriptive with laser sharp intelligence and pacing without any gaps. It reads like a celebration of hope, youth, friendship, and discovery as the narrator confidentially shares her longing to connect and her awestruck appreciation for all that is Irish.”

~ Ellen Comeskey

The Giveaway:

Claire Fullerton has generously offered a signed copy of Dancing To an Irish Reel as a prize for one of Irish American Mom’s readers.

To enter our giveaway just leave a comment on this blog post by noon on Sunday, July 26th, 2015. You can leave any comment you wish. What you write does not affect your chances of winning.

If you need some inspiration, why not share your insights into the nuances of Irish love and courtship, both old and new, from matchmaking to dowries, or crazy marriage proposals. The sky’s the limit when the topic is love ~ Irish style.

A winning comment will be chosen randomly. Remember to leave your e-mail so I can contact you should you win. Your e-mail won’t be published or shared, just used to contact our lucky winner.

The winner will be announced on Sunday July 26th, at the end of this post. I’ll send the winner an e-mail so Claire can mail the book.

You may check out Irish American Mom’s complete terms and conditions for sweepstake entries by clicking here.

Best of luck to all our entrants and a big thank you to Claire Fullerton for sharing her book with Irish American Mom’s readers.

And a big thanks to all who enter and help spread the word to family and friends about this little giveaway.

July 26th, 2015 – We Have A Winner:

Good news. Our winners have been chosen using the random “Pick Giveaway Winner” WordPress plug-in.

Congratulations to …..

Kathleen

I’ll send you a quick e-mail, Kathleen, to let you know you are our prize winner.

Thanks to everyone who joined in and entered this little giveaway.

And a big thank you to the Claire Fullerton for sponsoring this wonderful prize. Wishing her every success with this novel and all of her writing endeavors.

Here are some other prizes we have shared through giveaways here on the Irish American Mom blog.

Celtic Cross Giveaway for Easter

Irish Ceramic Urn or Vase Giveaway

Brian McDermott’s Donegal Table Cookbook Giveaway

Commemorative Irish Tree Planting Giveaway

Ireland Photo Frame Day Four Christmas Giveaway Prize

Thanks for following my recipes and ramblings.

Slán agus beannacht!

(Goodbye and blessings)

Irish American Mom

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