Skunk (A Love Story) by Justin Courter - Review & Giveaway

I hope you’ll excuse my brief absence. I was taking my leisure with some skunk. Skunk A Love Story, that is. When I first stumbled upon this book, I was immediately taken in by the premise: A man, obsessed by the odor of skunks, falls in love with a woman equally obsessed with fish. While the storyline definitely got my attention, I couldn’t help but wonder-could Courter pull it off through an entire book? After all, the story was originally published as a short. I had a hard time imagining it going any further than a few chapters. But I was more than pleasantly surprised.

Skunk A Love Story is a whirl of imagination and one-of-a-kind humor. I spent much of my reading time laughing out loud and then rereading the portion of text to laugh some more. While the premise may seem completely unbelievable and a rather tall tale when told in summary, the way in which the book is written will have any reader buying it hook, line, and sinker. Another big surprise? Skunk’s plot line takes several drastic turns, and I’d love to tell you what happens but I won’t be a stinker. I’ve seen many books fall flat when the author decides to rip the protagonist out of his comfy setting and plunk him somewhere totally unexpected. But Courter makes these transitions brilliantly without leaving the reader straining to find his way back into the groove.

I am pleased to bestow the great and not-yet coveted Goldfish Award on this most worthy of books. Skunk will make for fantastic summer reading. Sarcastic humor, unusual story line, and the only thing fluffy about it are those cute black and white critters. You’ll want to breathe this one in and savor it as I did. So here’s your chance. I have one copy to give away to a lucky reader.

3 Ways to Enter:

1.) Leave a comment telling me something you’re really hooked on. I’ll go first - I admit to liking the smell of skunk. Yes, I am a skunk sniffer, but only at a distance. I’ve never had one as a pet, but I knew someone who did and I was jealous. Don’t tell anyone, please. It’s rather embarrassing.

2.) Subscribers are automatically entered into this and all future giveaways. Just plunk your email address in the little white box on the right column. (Please make sure to verify your Feedburner subscription by responding to the email they send you. If you don’t receive it, check your junk mail.)

3.) Blog about this giveaway on your blog with a link back to this post.

Do all three, and you’ve got three entries to win! You have until midnight EST on Wednesday, May 21, 2008, to enter.

***Read the first three chapters of Skunk A Love Story online. This book is available in June from Omnidawn.