Giftcard - The Buttersmith's Gold, an Evertaster novella by Adam Glendon Sidwell

If you haven't read Evertaster yet, you are really missing out. Such a yummy treat! I mean read. Sidwell is coming out with companion novella in the Evertaster world. It comes out May 2nd!

The Buttersmiths' Gold

BATTLES. BLUEBERRIES. BOVINES.

TORBJORN AND STORFJELL’S HISTORY UNFOLDS IN AN EPIC EVERTASTER NOVELLA.

Everyone knows the most coveted treasure of the Viking Age was blueberry muffins. Blueberry muffins so succulent that if you sniffed just a whiff, you'd want a whole bite. If you bit a bite, you'd want a batch; if you snatched a batch, you'd stop at nothing short of going to war just to claim them all. 

Young Torbjorn Trofastsonn comes from the clan that makes them. He's a Viking through and

through – he's thirteen winters old, larger than most respectable rocks, and most of all, a Buttersmith. That's what he thinks anyway, until a charismatic merchant makes Torbjorn question his place among the muffin-makers. When Torbjorn lets the secret of his clan's muffin recipe slip, he calls doom and destruction down upon his peaceful village and forces his brother Storfjell and his clansmen to do the one thing they are ill-prepared to do: battle for their lives.

About The Buttersmiths' Gold

The Buttersmiths' Gold is a spin off novella in the Evertaster series that tells the story of two Viking brothers and their adventurous past. The Evertaster series (Book #1 released June 14, 2012) is about Guster Johnsonville, who goes searching for a legendary taste rumored to be the most delicious in all of history. Along the way he meets a slew of mysterious characters, including two Viking brothers Torbjorn and Storfjell. The Buttersmiths' Gold is their story. 124 pages. By Adam Glendon Sidwell. Published by Future House Publishing. 

Evertaster, Book #1:

A legendary taste. Sought after for centuries. Shrouded in secrecy.

When eleven-year-old Guster Johnsonville rejects his mother’s casserole for the umpteenth time, she takes him into the city of New Orleans to find him something to eat. There, in a dark, abandoned corner of the city they meet a dying pastry maker. In his last breath he entrusts them with a secret: an ancient recipe that makes the most delicious taste the world will ever know — a taste that will change the fate of humanity forever.

Forced to flee by a cult of murderous chefs, the Johnsonvilles embark on a perilous journey to ancient ruins, faraway jungles and forgotten caves. Along the way they discover the truth: Guster is an Evertaster — a kid so picky that nothing but the legendary taste itself will save him from starvation. With the sinister chefs hot on Guster’s heels and the chefs’ reign of terror spreading, Guster and his family must find the legendary taste before it’s too late.

You can get the book on Amazon here

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Interview with Adam Glendon Sidwell

Adam Glendon Sidwell
author of Evertaster

Welcome to Adam Glendon Sidwell, author of the tasty new middle grade novel, Evertaster.

Christy: Evertaster has so much food and gastronomy reference, I just wonder, do you have a background in the culinary arts?

Adam: I actually don’t. That’s the funny thing is that I just might be a Nevertaster. I usually eat whatever I can, and even eat bugs in times of necessity (like while camping). But I was fascinated by the gourmet world, and really wanted to know what makes connoisseurs tick, so I did a lot of research, and out came Evertaster. Oh, and my wife went to cooking school for a brief time, so she helped with some details during the revision process.

Christy: What pushed you to make the decision to self-publish?

Adam: Ultimately the decision came when I had very good run with two of the top NY publishing houses, and they were in love with my manuscript. In the end though, 1 was concerned that it was a little too quirky to sell. The other was a done deal, until the editor suddenly left the company, and the whole deal fell through. When my agent Alyssa Henkin of Trident Media Group offered to put Evertaster out through Trident’s new ebook department, I jumped at the chance. It was an easy decision, because as a writer you have to get your work in front of your audience or you eventually shrivel up and die. So now Evertaster is out on Kindle, Nook, and in paperback, and it’s doing really well. It even hit the Amazon overall top 100 bestseller list!

Christy: In your opinion, what is the ultimate food?

Adam: Well, see chapter 23 for the answer to that -- no spoilers! But the story aside, I really love ice cream. It just amazes me every time I eat it. It can have chocolate, it can have fruit. You can top it with marshmallow. There are endless flavor combinations! If only I could eat it for dinner! Oh wait, I’m an adult. I can!

Christy: What do you hope that readers will take away with them after reading Evertaster?

Adam: I hope that readers will think about the power of food. It surrounds us, it penetrates us, it binds us together. It’s a connection point in families. Mostly, I hope readers won’t try to eat the pages until after they’ve read the whole book.

Christy: What advice to you have for those who wish to self-publish?

Adam: I’d say do it now! There’s no reason to wait! Either your book will be terrible and no one will read it, or it will be good and you’ll find an audience. If you can, publish it on strawberry flavored paper, since I think that will help people get interested. Thanks Adam! We will be looking forward to more culinary adventures in the future. Purchase Evertaster on Amazon here.

Legendary Chocolate Chip Cookies

Legendary Chocolate Chip Cookies for
Evertaster by Adam Glendon Sidwell

Legendary Chocolate Chip Cookies

No, chocolate chip cookies are not "The One Recipe" in Evertaster, by Adam Glendon Sidwell (you don't want me to give away the mystery do you?).  Guster realizes that his family is the perfect ingredient that he's been looking for all along, and the chocolate chip cookies his mom bakes represent everything Guster learns in his journey for the perfect taste. At my house, this recipe is not just the one, it's the only one. If I make any other cookie, I am met with, "Why didn't you make chocolate chip cookies?" In fact, my husband claims that this recipe is why he fell in love with me. Thanks to my friend, and roommate Cathy for sharing it with me.

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup shortening
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups flour
1 cup chocolate chips (or more)

Preheat the oven to 325'. Cream together the sugars, butter and shortening.  Add the eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Mix until blended. Add the flour, one cup at a time. Gently mix in the chocolate chips. Scoop the cookies onto a baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned. Makes 4 dozen cookies (assuming no one eats the cookie dough).

Evertaster by Adam Glendon Sidwell

What if there were a taste so delicious that if you found it, you’d never want to eat anything else again? 


When eleven year-old Guster Johnsonville rejects his mother's casserole for the umpteenth time, she takes him to the city of New Orleans to find him something to eat. There, in a dark, abandoned corner of the city, they meet a dying pastry maker who tells them of a legendary recipe called the Gastronomy of Peace -- a recipe created hundreds of years ago, shrouded in secrecy, and sought after by connoisseurs everywhere.


So begins a perilous adventure that will take Guster, his clever sister Mariah, and the rest of the Johnsonvilles on an adventure to ancient ruins, faraway jungles and forgotten caves, where they discover that their search is more than just a quest to satisfy Guster’s cravings -- it is a quest that could change humanity forever


 ~Published June 14th 2012 by Future House Publishing


Food to Eat While Reading: Legendary Chocolate Chip Cookies

Legendary Chocolate Chip Cookies for
Evertaster by Adam Glendon Sidwell

I stumbled across Evertaster on Goodreads.  Sidwell has quite the publishing story and you can read about it here.

When I read the story blurb, I knew I would love Evertaster.  It's the perfect book for foodies and bookies. Indeed, there were moments in the book when I was drooling all over my iPad.

I was pleased with the opening scenes-great characters, good setup, yummy food.  All set.  Imagine my happiness when I found that the plot line is clever, and the ending not only satisfying, but insightful as well.

The settings were diverse and so fully explored that I could imagine myself peering into ancient caves and soaring on icy seas.

I absolutely love how Guster's family accompany him on his trip.  This isn't always easily pulled off in books, because parents often get in the way, or solve the child's problem.  Sidwell handled this with finesse.

Sidwell doesn't talk down to middle graders, and as a result, kids of all ages are going to love Guster's delicious adventure.

Love!

*BTW, I didn't want to spoil the mystery of what the "one recipe" is, but I'm totally going to make it!  It sounds to die for!  But you will have to read the book to figure it out.

Purchase Evertaster here.