Gems of Sunny Florida

First up: Discovering St. Augustine with Marilyn Baron

Although I live in Atlanta, I was born in Miami, went to college in Gainesville, FL, and have a home in Palm Coast, so I’m a Floridian at heart.  I first visited St. Augustine on a field trip with my Florida History Class at University of Florida. Now that my sister Sharon lives in Ponte Vedra Beach, about half an hour from St. Augustine, I’ve learned a lot more about what the city has to offer. 

My favorite time of year to visit is during the Nights of Lights. From November 18 through January 31, this spectacular holiday lighting display features more than two million tiny white lights adorning the palm trees and buildings of the city’s historic district. National Geographic named Night of Lights one of the best Christmas lights displays in the world.  

I highly recommend taking the Old Town Trolley of St. Augustine sightseeing tour (the “Green Trolley” http://www.trolleytours.com/st-augustine/) as a way to introduce yourself to the city. The Hop-On Hop-Off tour, which leaves every 15 minutes, from St. Augustine’s Old Jail, highlights the best St. Augustine attractions with 22 stops and more than 100 points of interest, such as St. George Street, Whetstone Chocolates, the St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum, Flagler College, Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth (where the 1513 discovery of Florida begins), the Bridge of Lions, Castillo de San Marcos (the oldest masonry fort in the continental U.S.), the Oldest Wooden School House in the USA, and Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Museum.  

The city is literally an original. Of course there are 42 miles of excellent beaches and golf courses, but there are many other things to do and see in St. Augustine.  There are some nice Victorian Bed and Breakfasts, hotels, neat shops and art galleries, and great restaurants.  

One of my favorite restaurants is The Columbia http://www.columbiarestaurant.com/fl_oldestrest.asp, founded in 1905, Florida’s oldest restaurant and the largest Spanish restaurant in the world. I love their black beans and rice, their Cuban bread and their 1905 salad, which can be topped with turkey or shrimp. My sister likes Preserved Restaurant, Old City House, Catch 27, The Floridian, Mojo Old City BBQ, Caps, and Meehan’s Irish Pub. 

For a change, visit The Lightner Museum, take a horse-drawn carriage tour through the city streets, a tasting tour, a gold tour, a ghost tour, a walking tour or a kayak eco-tour.

Another neat experience is going out on a Sundancer Cruises yacht. They have a Wednesday cocktail cruise, a Sunday brunch cruise, a Sunday dinner cruise and they do private cruise charters and weddings. Sundance Reservations (877-446-6465). St. Augustine Scenic Cruises depart daily from the St. Augustine Municipal Marina for 1-hour-and-15-minute narrated tours (1-800-542-8316).

America’s Castles: The Nation’s Oldest Port

Founded in 1876, The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum, affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, is dedicated to discovering, preserving, presenting and keeping alive the story of the nation’s oldest port. For more information about the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum, visit their Web site at http://www.staugustinelighthouse.org/.

And, of course, there’s shopping at the St. Augustine Outlets and St. Augustine Premium Outlets. For more information about St. Augustine attractions, events, hotels, etc., visit http://www.floridashistoriccoast.com/.

And if that’s not enough of a recommendation, Time Magazine has named St. Augustine as one of its “33 Amazing Cities You Should Visit in 2018.” U.S. News & World Report includes it on its list of “Top 50 Romantic Destinations Around the World.”

 

I write in a variety of genres, from humorous coming-of-middle age women’s fiction to historical romantic thrillers and romantic suspense to paranormal/fantasy. THE SIEGE: A NOVEL, released in January 2018, is my 14^th novel published with The Wild Rose Press, Inc., and my 23rd work of fiction. AmazonEncore republished my book Sixth Sense in September 2015. I’ve received writing awards in Single Title, Suspense Romance, Novel With Strong Romantic Elements and Paranormal//Fantasy Romance and a chapter service award from Georgia Romance Writers. A public relations consultant in Atlanta, I graduated with a BS in Journalism and a minor in Creative Writing from the University of Florida. I worked in Public Relations for AT&T in Atlanta for 13 years before starting my own PR firm. I serve on the Roswell Reads Steering Committee and was a featured author in the 2016 Atlanta Author Series. I was the Finalist in the 2017 Georgia Author of the Year Awards in the Romance category for my novel, Stumble Stones. A native of Miami, Florida, I live in Roswell, Georgia.

 

The Siege: A Novel

Artist Theia Constas receives a tour of Italy from her grandmother as a college graduation present.

Wade Bingham follows the rules and finds himself alone on his honeymoon trip..

In the wrong place at the wrong time in Florence, Italy, the two strangers find themselves thrust together.

Buy a copy of The Siege and read a full excerpt here: Amazon (eBook and Paperback) https://www.amazon.com/Siege-Novel-Marilyn-Baron-ebook/dp/B077SKW4Y5/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512917036&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Siege%3A+A+Novel+Marilyn+Baron

Barnes & Noble NOOK  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-siege-marilyn-baron/1127614240?ean=2940158777936

I’m offering a paperback copy of Love Around the Table, a short story anthology. Six Southern authors share six great short stories of friendship, family, and romance, and six special recipes of love. Signed by all six authors. 

Here’s where to find me:

Website www.marilynbaron.com

Twitter https://twitter.com/MarilynBaron

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Marilyn-Baron-286807714666748/

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4722647.Marilyn_Baron

Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/Marilyn-Baron/e/B008PJFQPC

Newsletter http://www.marilynbaron.com/newsletter/

And Another Great Florida Author, Barbara Edwards, Presents Controlled Burning in Florida

Fire isn’t always a tragedy like the huge burn in California. Fire can be a tool to prevent those blazes. Florida State Parks use control burning to rid the land of scrub and overgrowth that can feed a fire. This is a planned process.

Let me explain. Over time, plants drop dead leaves and bushes thicken with dried branches. Even areas like the Everglades, a huge waterway full of swamp grass can burn if the lightning strikes are right. In fact, Florida has experienced wild burns for so long the land depends on them to re-grow. Like the Redwoods and Sequoia in the far West, Slash Pine need to burn for the seeds in the pinecones to sprout.

We’ve seen control burning up close. The St George Island State Park has been burning sections of the park for several years.

The weather has to be right. Dry. Windless. And a time when there are fewer campers to relocate. 

Rangers are trained to be firefighters. 

The fire is started with hand-held flamethrowers.

Several of these photos were taken by Ethan, a ranger in the park.

 

My free gift is an ebook of Annie’s Heart. I included a prairie fire in the plot.  Comment here for your chance to win. 

Annie’s Heart was the result of a dream I had about living on the Kansas plains after the Civil War ended. I researched the area and found the hardships settlers faced to be overwhelming. I was surprised so many not only survived, but thrived. Annie is a strong woman with too many problems, but she is a survivor.

I hope you take this opportunity to read about her.

Annie's Heart 

Only two coins and a gold pendant heart separate widowed ANNIE MOSS from disaster. The fields need to be plowed, the barn repaired and food stored for the winter, but she is alone and afraid. Her dream of a home for her children hangs from the promise of a wandering man to keep moving on, a man she has no reason to trust.

TRACE RANDOLPH has lost everything except his honor, so when a desperate ANNIE saves his life he knows he must pay his debt, even if it means marrying her. The only promise he makes is to leave before the winter snows. A promise he finds impossible to keep.

Click http://a.co/7FQRoiK to read an excerpt and purchase this great read by Barbara Edwards of Florida

My Website http://www.barbaraedwards.net 

My Blog https://barbaraedwardscomments.wordpress.com/

My Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003F6ZK1A/

My Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BarbaraEdwards.Author/

(Credits go to Ethan, for the awesome firefighting pictures and http://www.barbaraedwards.net.  Also www.marilynbaron.com. All info provided by authors)