Five Star Expressions - Winner Takes All [Hardcover]

Diane Amos (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1594143668 | ISBN-13: 978-1594143663 | Publication Date: July 11, 2005 | Edition: 1

Recipe for chaos: Start with a raffle for one brand-new Winnebago, a dishonest Winnebago dealer who doesn't intend to part with the prize, and a virus-infected computer that spits out two winning tickets. Add Thomas O'Leary and Karen Ann Brown, opposites who instantly dislike each other. Pack them into a motor home for thirty days with three misbehaved boys, a Siamese cat, and a black Lab. Let them fight it out in a highly publicized tour, "Survivor" style. Both Thomas and Karen will do anything to win the grand prize. But the more days-and nights-they spend in each other's company, not to mention the three boys, one dog, one cat, a possible stalker, and hordes of reporters following their every move, the more they realize that there is a much bigger prize at stake-each other.

Diane Amos lives with husband Dave, in a small town north of Portland, Maine. (20050601)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Right from the first page, WINNER TAKES ALL is amusing. The dealer, Floyd, is the epitome of a shady salesman. He will stop at nothing to give you a good deal, as long as he gets the better deal for himself. Karen is trying to impress her disinterested parents. All her life she has tried to please them, with little results. Thinking a motor home would make a great gift, she wants to win badly. Not a bad gift, but maybe she should have taken the shush money offered by Floyd and walked away. Karen tries really hard to control the kids, but bribing them from the start is not a good way to control them. She also ends up in laugh out loud situations that help keep the laughter flowing in WINNER TAKES ALL."

"Tom didn?t even buy the raffle ticket himself; his brother did and put his name on it. But Tom figures if he wins, he will sell it and use the money to help put his younger siblings through college. Holding the winning ticket, he just knows Karen is also a scam artist and somehow forged the same numbers. As an "I told you so" attitude, he takes on the challenge but soon finds himself attracted to the perky Karen. Despite raising his siblings after their parents died, Tom is not fond of kids, and being trapped with three energetic boys is enough to make any man go insane. Somehow, Tom manages to keep his sanity intact. And speaking of the three little boys...I found their antics amusing at first, but their mouthy talk and "what could they get into next" situations soon became a bit tiring. I would?ve found a relative to take care of the kids as soon as possible. Children are cute, but sometimes can be too much in a romance."

"Get past the huckster salesman Floyd, the three hyperactive boys, and the wild ride in a motor home and you will find a burgeoning romance between Tom and Karen. It?s slow to burn, but once it does, these two light up the pages of WINNER TAKES ALL. I guarantee you will find yourself chuckling and shaking your head, but what a pleasant ride WINNER TAKES ALL is. Diane Amos has penned a winning recipe of love and comedy between two genial characters who fall in love amid the chaos of a contest and makeshift childrearing. Don?t miss this highly amusing tale."
--Romance Reviews Today, July 2005 (Romance Reviews Today )

"Readers will win with this amusing romantic road show as Diane Amos shows her talent by providing a fine love story with children, pets and unscrupulous Floyd dampening the heat between the lead couple. Karen Ann is a solid lead protagonist needing to be loved as her parents are aloof towards her; Thomas, showered with sibling love, needs space after raising his brothers and sisters following the deaths of their parents in a car accident. The kids, dog, and cat provide comic chaos while Floyd is someone readers will not want to buy a used car from. WINNER TAKES ALL is a fun contemporary."
--Harriet Klausner, June 2005 (harrietklausner.wwwi.com )

Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: Five Star; 1 edition (July 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594143668
• ISBN-13: 978-1594143663
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,256,336 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The thought of writing a book never entered my mind until a friend mentioned she was writing a romance and belonged to the Maine Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. I accompanied her to a meeting, and I was hooked. Undaunted, to me, writing a book was simply stringing together sentences to form paragraphs, arranging the paragraphs into scenes, then placing the scenes into chapters. If I wrote enough chapters-viola, I had a book.

Little did I know!

Finally, nine books and seven years later I received "The Call" at 10:11 AM on October16th, 2002. The editor of Five Star wanted to discuss my book! The rest is history.

I live in a small town in Maine with my husband, Dave. We have four grown children, four grandsons and two granddaughters. I operate an art studio in my home where I teach both children and adults. Many of my adult students have taken classes from me for years and have become great friends. We have so much fun in class, at times, I wonder whether I should be paying them. I hope they don't read this bio.

I'm an established Maine artist. My paintings are in private collections across the United States. When I'm not writing or painting, I'd like to say I'm either racking up miles on my exercise bike or jogging in a marathon-sounds impressive, but don't believe it. I know that exercise is good for me, but why can't it be as much fun as it looks on the television infomercials that persuade us to buy their torturous machines?

I enjoy spending time with my family at our camp on a small Maine pond or watching television-I confess I'm a reality show addict-what better place to find characters for my books!

I've been married for over thirty-five years to my real-life hero, a man who's supported and encouraged me over the years and still puts a smile on my face.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real winner, September 28, 2005

By 

marie (Gray, ME) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Five Star Expressions - Winner Takes All (Hardcover)

A delightful read, wonderfully romantic and funny. Diane Amos has a gift when it comes to love wit and children! Winner Takes All was one of the funniest books I've read this summer. This author should be on your keeper list.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a fun contemporary, August 2, 2005

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Five Star Expressions - Winner Takes All (Hardcover)

In New England, Floyd's RV holds a raffle with the winner receiving a brand new Winnebago. However, due to a computer virus causing a glitch, tickets with the same number were sold. Thus, when Floyd called out 12, 7, 6, 8, 4, & 15, O'Leary Construction Company owner Thomas O'Leary and People's Bank official Karen Ann Brown claimed the prize.

Floyd offers a contest between the two stubborn rivals. They will share the Winnebago for one month on a tour of Maine with the one who brings in the most publicity to his financially troubled dealership winning the vehicle. Thomas brings along his Labrador Bear while Karen Ann brings her cat Luce and the seven year old and his two younger brothers of her hospitalized friend, a single mom. With Peter, Charles and infant Byron as chaperones and Floyd pulling stunts so both will lose, Karen Ann and Thomas fall in love, but both fears what will happen after the chaotic contest ceases.

Readers will win with this amusing romantic road show as Diane Amos shows her talent by providing a fine love story with children, pets and unscrupulous Floyd dampening the heat between the lead couple. Karen Ann is a solid lead protagonist needing to be loved as her parents are aloof towards her; Thomas, showered with sibling love, needs space after raising his brothers and sisters following the deaths of their parents in a car accident. The kids, dog, and cat provide comic chaos while Floyd is someone readers will not want to buy a used car from. WINNER TAKE ALL is a fun contemporary.

Harriet Klausner