On The Road With Ranchers & Historical Romance

I know, I know.  Here I am popping up on my blog again to tell you that I'm some place else.  In my defense, there's stuff going on in Wendy's Real Life.  Good stuff, great stuff - just stuff that I can't talk about yet and hope to be able to shout from the hill-tops next week.  Which means....yeah, blogging inspiration is at a low ebb.  Well, at least around here.  I do have two posts over at Heroes & Heartbreakers right now.

First up, I discuss a pivotal moment in Donna Alward's excellent category romance, Her Rancher Rescuer.  Go on over, read all about it, then maybe reread my "A" review for it - and then, like, you should totally want to read it for yourself.

Next up, "my" list of unusual historicals for March.  I use the term "my" loosely since I was having a devil of a time getting this list together.  But never fear!  So many wonderful Twitter peeps bailed me out and came to my rescue.  Hence, the title of the post.

Thank God For Country Boys

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today 'shipping about Justified's Raylan and Boyd. 

Because really?  What is sexier than a two men with extensive vocabularies?  Not a whole lot.  Says me.  These two guys just need to stop playing around and admit that the chemistry they have together is way hotter than the chemistry they have with any of the women on the show.

Head on over to read all about 'em, and look at more yummy, yummy pictures.

Unusual Historicals For February

The February 2014 round-up of "unusual historicals" has gone live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.

A nice mix of variety this month, including the 1920s, ancient Rome, and a Regency featuring an actress heroine.

Head on over to H&H to see the full rundown.

On The Road: With NPR

First things first, I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers with another scrumptiously angsty Delicious Despair post talking about To Tempt A Viking by Michelle Willingham.

Because, you know, we all need more emotionally tortured hunky Vikings in our lives.

Head on over and read all about it.

+++++

So yeah, it's this past Monday.  As in, two days ago.  And I get this random e-mail from some guy claiming to be a producer for On Point with Tom Ashbrook, a nationally syndicated radio program for NPR (National Public Radio for you folks outside the States).  First thing I did was Google him.  Because, dude, you should see some of the e-mail I get.  Anyway, it seemed legit and all I could think about was my two NPR-lovin' sisters. 

They wanted to talk to someone who was a blogger/critic and someone must have had the brilliant idea of "hey, maybe a librarian!" - and they got me.  Because apparently when you Google "librarian" and "romance novels" - Wendy is what you get stuck with.

Arrangements were made.  Paperwork was filled out (because for my employer it ain't worth doing if you don't have paperwork to fill out) and I hauled myself to the local college radio station, where I would be joining the program "live."

Yes, live.

I've never done anything in radio, and it was a really cool experience.  Of course Wendy + public speaker = crap shoot (on the best days), but I think I did an OK job and hopefully I represented the genre and it's readership well. 

You can listen to a podcast of the program here - and yes, I know, they put the dreaded "BR" word in the title.  But never fear, author Angela Knight, who was also featured on the program, does a great job of addressing that wee lil' issue.

On The Road

I'm on the road, talking about two totally different sorts of reads.

First up, head on over to Heroes & Heartbreakers to read my First Look of Crazy Stupid Sex by Maisey Yates.  What happens with an app developer falls for rich, lay-about playboy?  Boy, what doesn't!

Next, I'm over at The Good, The Bad and The Unread with a review of Sherri Shakelford's latest inspirational western romance, The Marshal's Ready-Made Family. Using western romance fan shorthand - think of it like a kinder, gentler version of a Maggie Osborne story.

Over at H&H

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today with my latest "shopping list" of unusual historicals.

January was.....really thin.  Generally speaking December/January tend to be thin regardless of genre, with publishers glutting the market for fall and spring.  My disappointment this month was that I found zip that fit the bill from the digital presses.  C'mon guys!  I know historicals probably have more dismal sale numbers than, say, erotic romance featuring monster billionaire Dom heroes, but take pity on this poor gal.

Anyhoodle, you can see the full list here.  It's a nice reminder that I need to buy some westerns this month.....

Traveling To The Badlands

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today offering a "First Look" of Badlands by Jill Sorenson.  This is the third book in a series, and one I've been dying to get my hands on every since I finished book one (Aftershock).

I might have squealed, out loud, when I noticed this book on Netgalley.  Seriously.  It's a rare, beautiful thing when Wendy gets excited about a romance series.

Head on over and read all about my take on Penny's and Owen's romance.

Over At H&H

I've had two posts go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers this week.

First up, a First Look of Forged in the Desert Heat by Maisey Yates - which is one of the all-time most glorious of Harlequin Presents sub-categories.....a sheikh romance.  I'm not a big fan of sheikh stories, but this one is pretty good, mostly because the author makes her heroine self-aware and the hero has all the delicious angsty baggage we've come to expect from Presents heroes over the years.  If I were grading it, I would say this one landed somewhere around my B-/B territory.

The other post was a collaboration, the first in a series of "Best of 2013" where H&H bloggers talk about their three favorite reads of the last year.  While I still plan on doing my usual year-end round-up on this blog (so many good B+ reads to talk about!), you can get a sneak peak over at H&H where I mention three A-rated titles I read last year.  Coincidentally, all books featuring "older" heroines. 

Unusual Historicals List At H&H

My December "shopping list" of "unusual historicals" has gone live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.

December is never known for being an orgy when it comes to new book offerings.  Publishers tend to pull back after the bonanza that is the big fall/autumn push.  However it's really light for "unusual" historicals this month.  In fact, my list is basically a giant advertisement for Harlequin.  Which is just the way it fell.  Hopefully we'll see a little more variety in titles, and publishers, at the start of the new year.

Two New Posts At H&H

So the blog has been a bit of a Dead Zone this week (thank you job for sucking out my brains....), but I've had two posts go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers!

First up is a "Delicious Despair" post featuring The Sword Dancer by Jeannie Lin.  "Delicious Despair" is that phenomenon in romance novels where the author literally rips your guts out on the way to making her characters bleed towards their happy ending. 

Head on over and read all about Lin's not-remotely-innocent heroine.

I also have a First Look that went live today of the latest book in Sarah M. Anderson's Bolton Brothers series, Expecting A Bolton Baby.  Yes, it's one of those We Bumped Uglies One Night And Now I'm Carrying Your Demon Spawn plots.  And yes, it's also a book featuring a "motorcycle guy."  And yet somehow, despite all that, I liked the story. 

Head on over and check it out.

First Look Over At H&H

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today giving a First Look to Donna Alward's soon-to-be-released A Cadence Creek Christmas. 

Why not head on over and check it out?

Unusual Historicals For October

My latest shopping list of "Unusual" Historicals went live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today.

October is a great month of variety!  There's a little something of everything, including Edwardian, Georgian, colonial America (!), westerns and.....wait for it....Victorian-era mountain climbers in the French Alps!

No, I'm not making that up.

Head on over and start filling out your own shopping list.

The Ususally Unusual Over At H&H

I've over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today, once again bringing you a handy shopping list of "unusual" historicals for September. 

And yes, I know it's a pretty thin list this month.  Historicals, in general, are pretty thin this month.  But never fear!  It looks like there will be more fruit on the vine for October.

Not that I need more books to read, or anything.  It's not like I'm totally neglecting every single book I own at the moment.  Stupid real life, sucking out my brains again....

Shopping List At H&H

I'm currently buried under a small mountain of books, but that doesn't mean I don't like to make shopping lists!  You can find me over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today with a handy shopping list of "unusual historicals" for the month of August.

Let us not speak of how many of these I'm interested in.  It just makes me wish I was independently wealthy and didn't have my pesky day job holding me back from reading all day, every day, all the time, stupid Real Life keeping me from reading.....

Terry Donovan, Love Machine

So, yeah.  I'm slightly addicted to the new Showtime offering, Ray Donovan.  I love me some Liev Schreiber, and Jon Voight is SO good on this show people.  I mean, really really really good.  Plus the show is basically a sleazy prime-time soap opera.  Set in Los Angeles.  Where Ray has to "fix" various problems for his various high-profile clients.  What is not to love here?  I mean, there are endless possibilities for shenanigans!

Head on over to Heroes & Heartbreakers to read my latest post, all about the sly little romance the writers have included in the show.  Frances made me, not very happy last week.  But Terry?  Oh Terry, how I love you.

Poor Beau Brummel!

So my latest "thing" over at Heroes & Heartbreakers is to do a monthly round-up of "unusual historicals."  When I send these off to my editor, I try to come up with pithy titles for the posts.  Sometimes, I do OK.  And sometimes my brain is mush.  Such was the case when I did July's round-up, which happened post-RWA.  All I could come up with is "Beau Brummel Is Mr. Snotty Pants."

Hey, what can I say, maturity is my middle name.

So imagine my surprise when they stuck with that. 

I know I tend to do these features on my blog as well, but my lists over at H&H are more exhaustive (although I cannot say with 100% certainty that they're all-inclusive).  Head on over, take a gander, and have your shopping list handy.  I've already read one title on this list, and have five others in the TBR.  ::gulp::

Heroine Week Post

I've been kicking around in the online romance community since 1999, and for those of you who have been following my various ramblings all that time I would wager there are three commonly known "facts" about me.

1) I'm a librarian (like, duh)
2) I'm a category romance ho
3) I love, beyond all reason, historical western romances

What might not be as well known is exactly why I love historical western romances so much - and that answer is simple. 

It's the heroines.

Given the landscape, the hardships, the lack of civilization (in many cases) - women making their way out west would have be self-reliant, tough, smart, and resilient.  Doesn't mean they can't be vulnerable - but it also means they have, what I call, "real problems." 

I like my fairy tale escapism as much as the next gal - but romances that tend to flip my switch the hardest are books featuring characters that feel "real" to me.  Like they really could have existed in the past.  Also, I'll be honest - my blood is quintessential American.  Which is to say, I'm a "mutt."  I like that in historical westerns the characters don't have to be gently bred or dashing Dukes or "special" in anyway.  They are allowed to be "normal" people.  Normal people often in extraordinary circumstances - but normal all the less.

So when Brie over at Romance Around The Corner approached me about writing a post for her special Heroine Week extravaganza, I immediately said yes.  We kicked around some ideas (yes, category romance was thrown out there!) - but ultimately I wanted to talk western heroines, and some of the more memorable ones I've read over the years.  So why not head on over and check it out?  And stick around Romance Around The Corner all week - because, like whoa, Brie's got some great guest-posters lined up.

Yet Another Historical Romance Shopping List

Continuing on with the "unusual historicals" theme - I've thrown together a shopping list of June 2013 titles for Heroes & Heartbreakers.  Some of these titles I've mentioned on this blog before, and some of them I have not.  This isn't an all-encompassing list - but hey!  It's a good place to start.

Head on over to take a look.

Now On Facebook!

So apparently people spend like, all day, on Facebook.  I don't because, you know, I'd rather spend all day on my blog or on Twitter.  But to each his own, and let it not be said that Wendy isn't out there marketing her wee lil' corner of cyberspace to the best of her ability.

Which means, yes - this 10 year old blog now has a Facebook page.  Because, you know, Facebook junkies shouldn't get a respite from my awesomeness.

Why not head on over and "like" The Misadventures Of Super Librarian?

Wishing On A Star....

OK, so I've already publicly stated on this blog that I don't think historical romance is 1) dying 2) already dead or 3) in serious trouble.  Doesn't mean I don't have hopes and dreams, ambitions and desires for the subgenre.

On that score, I have a new post over at Heroes & Heartbreakers: Wishlisting on a Historical Star: A Historical Romance Starter Kit.  Go on over and read my wishlist of things I want to see more of in historical romance.  Oh, and hey - why not share some of your own?