Remember way back in July when I was at the RWA conference in Washington D.C.? Well while I was there I taped a video interview for Romantic Times with author Carrie Lofty. I just got word yesterday that our three-part interview is now online - just in time to promote Carrie's most excellent new book, Scoundrel's Kiss.
A couple things of note:
That's it. Nothing but carrot sticks for me.
I don't normally play with my hair that much. It was a gorgeous day, we filmed outside, but there was a breeze. Hence the hair playing.
We had no script we were working off from. None. Nada. No notes, no nothing. This is a completely off the cuff, fly by the seat of our pants interview. And I think it turned out pretty damn good. Says me.
Below I'm posting all three videos, each running about 5 minutes a piece. I know. If you wanna watch them - great. If you'd rather poke your eyes out with a dull spoon - you don't have to watch. We can still be friends. Honest. Here it goes:
Video 1: Carrie and I discuss her debut novel, What A Scoundrel Wants
Video 2:Carrie and I discuss her latest release, Scoundrel's Kiss
Video 3: Carrie and I discuss her unusual historical settings
I'm thinking that this will be the week where I finally get my sea legs back from all the holiday madness. Things seem to be settling back into a routine now. Of course this doesn't mean my thoughts are any less cluttered. Here's the latest rattling around in my brain. (Scary, I know)
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First up, for you observant types who may have scrolled down my blog's sidebar this weekend, yes, I have cataloged and added a widget for the Bat Cave Keeper Stash. Gotta say, it's more books than I thought - with the total clocking in at 74. Now granted, not every book I've kept over the years is a bonafide Grade A read for yours truly. I "keep" books for various reasons. Maybe it's a favorite author and I have an autographed copy? Or in the case of Nevada Nights by Ruth Ryan Langan, it's an autographed copy of the first romance novel I ever read. Not one I would recommend to readers, but yeah - I kept it because I'm a Nostalgia Ho.
The So. Cal. Bloggers got together on Saturday and we hit a couple of used bookstores in Renee's neck of the wood. I came home with a small, but healthy pile of new additions to the Bat Cave TBR. I stole some books from Lori - who is, I'm convinced, my Category Reading Ho Twin separated at birth. We agree so often on Harlequins, it's kinda scary. Notable additions from the bookstores include a copy of Joe's Wife by Cheryl St. John, which I wanted to replace since I got rid of my copy years ago. I also picked up a couple of books by Julia Justiss and Jessica Hart - two authors I "discovered" last year and wanted to read more of.
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The Bat Cave has been overrun with repair men the last couple of weeks. Some of you may recall that we had a small computer meltdown before Christmas. I finally threw up my hands and called in a professional. The good news? I did a great job of cleaning up the computer on my own - so all the icky viruses were gone. The bad news? We were dangerously low on memory. It cost a chunk of change to have the geek come out and upgrade us, but damn - worth every penny.
Then Our Wubby started acting up. This would be our living room TV. Thank goodness we bought the service plan, although turns out the darn thing was still under warranty. According to our repair guy, it was just our dumb luck to have a part go bad. He was in my living room 15 minutes, replaced the part, good as new.
The lesson here? Kids, if college ain't for you - seriously think of going into repair work. Dumb ass people like me will always need plumbers, electricians and people to fix their electronics and we're willing to pay just short of highway robbery to have someone do it for us. Oh, who am I kidding? Sometimes we'll even pay highway robbery.
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When I first heard they were making a movie version of the cheesy 1980s TV show The A-Team I rolled my eyes. I loved that show as a kid, but admittedly it had plot holes you could drive a truck through. These guys are wanted by the federal government? Yet they drive around in a tricked-out conversion van with a big scary dude rockin' a mohawk and enough gold chains to feed a third world country for a year. Yeah, way to remain inconspicuous. And in the immortal words of my Lil' Sis: "I love how everyday people can always seem to find them when they need help. Is The A-Team in the phone book?"
Hardy har har.
Anyway, the trailer leaked last week and it's now officially up over at YouTube. Gotta say, this looks like it's not going to totally suck. I couldn't really see Liam Neeson as Hannibal (I can now) and was totally flummoxed on ideas for who would play the Mr. T character. Turns out they went to the UFC and got Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - who definitely looks the part. But the best bit of news?
Bradley Cooper as Faceman. Seriously. Best casting ever.
We've got the tricked out van, stuff blowing up and Bradley Cooper shirtless. That's really enough for me. And why yes? I really am this shallow. Thanks for asking.
After pouring over my spreadsheet one final time, here are the books that truly stood out for me in 2009. Since I read quite a bit of category romance this past year, it's no surprise that they make up most of the titles on this list. Further proof for the naysayers who think every book Harlequin publishes has to be about a tycoon, virgin secretary or secret baby. Ahem. Anywho, on with the show. (Title links lead to full reviews)
I'll admit that I'm a Nostalgia Ho, and this story flipped that switch hard. It took me back to the days when I was a wee lil' Super Librarian, browsing the local public library shelves as a teenager, and reading all those wonderful first person narrated "woman in peril" stories. A heroine with gumption, a rakish hero, and a soap opera style plot that made my heart swoon. I loved every blessed word of it.
Anyone who knows me knows that I cannot tolerate weak heroines. So it's a little surprising that I liked this story so much. Heroine whose abusive husband left her, is about to evict the ex-con hero who is renting the apartment above her bakery when fate steps in. Not only does he stay in the apartment, she ends up hiring him for a construction job - defying everyone from her asshole ex to her family in the process. The heroine is wet dishrag at the beginning of the story, but it's wonderful to read about her transformation. This is the type of book that will divide readers, but damn, it worked for me.
Carrie Alexander is one of my favorite HSR authors, and this book is a great example of why. After her mother leaves her money in her will (with the stipulation to have "an adventure") heroine takes a home-swap style vacation to Arizona. It starts out a little bumpy when she finds herself staying in a condo in a retirement-type community, but it quickly heats up when she meets the hero, the driven and ambitious manager of the resort. Two normal grown-ups, and not a kid or tycoon in sight. It's great.
The third book in the author's Beauty Killer series, this entry felt a little like a placeholder after the wiz-bang, bare-knuckle, first two books. But what can I say? I'm still well and truly hooked.
Highland Rebel by Judith James, Sourcebooks, Historical Romance, Restoration British Isles, September 2009, Grade = B+
Great time period, great conflict, and a wounded hero (who doesn't wallow) who'll sell his loyalty to the highest bidder (so long as they have a shot in Hell at being the winning side). A heroine who starts out a bit rocky, but with an intriguing back story, who calls the hero on most of his bullshit (love that!). Nice romantic couple, good use of history, and a realistic ending. Trust me. Once you get past the first 50 pages, it's fantastic.
Exotic Middle Eastern setting, a widowed heroine who vows to never love another soldier, and an Army Colonel hero determined to catch her eye. Sizzling sexual tension, romantic storyline, and a happy ending. Loved it.
Sometimes all I want from the romance genre is two adult characters who talk to each other. I was desperate for that when I picked up this book, and it delivered exactly what I wanted. Heroine who has finally landed a job that she "likes" working for a wedding planner, finds herself working with the hero, a reformed bad boy turned CEO that she knew as a teenager. She's romantic and chaotic; He's determined to over-compensate for his past with the right job, right tie and right girl - no matter how boring they are. Naturally, sparks fly.
Wounded Air Force officer hero is in Las Vegas when he falls in lust with Keno girl heroine. He's got it bad, but she shoots down fly-boys better than any missile. His buddies egg him on, plus he's really determined. The heroine thwarts his advances like second nature, but ultimately is drawn to him thanks to her loneliness and his persistence. I read Blaze for "fun and sexy" and this story has a wonderful emotional depth, coupled with "real" conflict. The only misstep was a sex scene that pushed one of my hot buttons.
Former slacker ski-bum hero falls in lust with heroine's voice over the phone. Then he meets her in person and she's....fat! Size 16 (oh thank you Lord!) heroine runs her own business (chocolate shop, naturally) and is used to people underestimating her. The hero is chaffing at the notion many of his slacker buddies have that he'll wash out at being a "grown-up" and revert back to his ski-bum ways. They fall for each other, but are left with the question of if their relationship has a shot in Hell at working. The conflict is completely centered around perceptions, and I really adored the fact that the author didn't heave it all on the heroine's shoulders.
And those are the nine books that really cooked for me in 2009. The way it's shaping up, I think this will be my last post in my yearly reading recap. I just don't have the energy or desire to delve into the "bad" books, and there's not really a need for a summary post as far as I'm concerned. Besides, it's always better to end on a high note anyway, right? I encourage you to read the full reviews for any of these books that might interest you. That's where you'll find more nitty-gritty details on what worked, or didn't work, for me.
All in all, I was fairly pleased with 2009 - but naturally I'm hoping for bigger and better in 2010. Namely I want to be more consistent. Read a little every day, instead of going on huge feast or famine binges. Oh, and the ever ubiquitous Read More Out Of My Mammoth TBR pipe dream. I sucked at doing that this past year. Here's hoping I have more resolve in 2010.
It's time for me to finally put 2009 to bed, and that means recapping My Year In Reading. I always like to devote a couple of posts to this topic, and this first one will be a look at the numbers.
I managed to read 95 books in 2009. This is up from 2008, when my total was a measly 64. This is very good. Despite falling into several slumps over the course of 2009, I'm pretty happy with 95. The bad news? I padded my totals with a lot of short stories and category romance reads. Now I subscribe to the school of thought that a book is a book is a book. But admittedly, reading a 200 page category romance just isn't quite the same feat as say reading a 400 page single title. But, whatever. My spreadsheet says 95 and that's what I'm stickin' with.
As for how it all breaks down - here are the genres I read last year. Keep in mind I tend to tag books with multiple descriptions, so if you were to add these all up, you're going to see way more than 95. For example, for a category romance I'll have tagged it as "series" and "contemporary."
My category romance totals are way up thanks to reviewing them over at TGTBTU, which would also be the reason why contemporary settings outpaced historicals this year. Some of you are probably wondering how I can so successfully avoid paranormals. Honestly, it wasn't that hard - you just have to be willing to read Harlequins. Dayum they publish a mess of books every month and 95% of them aren't remotely paranormal.
As for publication dates? Well this is just sad:
1983 = 1 2005 = 1 2007 = 3 2008 = 8 2009 = 81
I really must do a better job of tackling my TBR. These numbers of entirely too lop-sided.
As for how my grading broke down?
2009..........2008 A = 2..........A= 11 B = 45........B = 30 C = 38........C = 21 D = 10........D = 2 F = 0...........F = 0
My A reads were way down this year, and I'm not very happy about it. My B and C reads were definitely the healthiest, making 2009 a fairly solid year despite my lack of "keepers." I am a bit surprised I had 10D grades. I had no idea they were that high. No F grades is no surprise at all, because these days I'm more likely to slap a book with a DNF (Did Not Finish) than slog through a book I completely and totally despise. Speaking of, I don't keep track of my DNFs, so couldn't tell you if I had any this past year. My guess? Maybe one? Maybe?
And that's it for the numbers. Looking ahead to 2010 - I want to discover more A reads. I'm not sure how to go about doing this, other than pray to the Book Gods. I also need to read more "old" stuff - and on that score I plan on doing Keishon's TBR Challenge for the first time ever.
Next up? I plan on highlighting some of my favorite reads of 2009.
Before I get around to delving into a Year End Review for 2009, I thought I better take care of business and post a December 2009 recap. I opened up my handy-dandy spreadsheet and was confronted with.....
Three books.
Yeah, I only read three books in December. Beyond pathetic. I'm going to blame the holidays in a dismal attempt to make myself feel better.
Anywho, here's how it breaks down: (title links lead to full reviews)
When unwed heroine is sent away to "school" because of her pregnancy, she returns home with her infant son to discover her protective grandfather has concocted a make-believe husband. Then a man shows up with the make-believe husband's name, and all hell breaks loose. Hero's motivations are a bit fantastical, but the author sells it really well. Also, an interesting and lively setting - centered around a large German clan and their brewery business. The best read of the month.
I think I'm finally ready to break up with this series. A totally unfocused plot that takes forever to get anywhere. Vague villains with even vaguer motivations. Too much series baggage, most of it centered around stuff I was supposed to "remember" from previous books - but didn't. I did get my Detective Pete Marino fix, but that's the only good thing I can say about this one. Blergh.
American heiress comes to London hoping to gain audience with Queen and thereby making herself "acceptable" to her would-be fiance's family. She hires the hero, a destitute blue blood to turn her into "a lady." He's snooty and snobby, she's American through and through. Several eye-rolling elements (a Victorian Duke who knows Kung Fu? Really?! A rescued pet monkey? Really?!) and a stubborn heroine sunk the romance a bit for me. Still, it wasn't completely without charm, and it ended up being an "OK" read for me.
And that's it. Here's hoping I can find more of a groove in 2010!
I liked Carrie Lofty's debut novel, What A Scoundrel Wants, for the reasons several readers I know didn't care for it. Both hero and heroine were "morally flexible." I'll be honest - Will and Meg would sell their own mothers if the price were halfway decent. And while romance readers seem more than willing to buy into dubious heroes? Yeah, not so much heroines (don't get me started on this subject). Also there was the fact that Meg hung her sister, Ada, out to dry. In a genre where heroines seem willing to easily forgive their sisters for some pretty inexcusable behavior, I kind of found that refreshing. I guess I'm more vindictive than I thought?
Scoundrel's Kiss gives us Ada's story, and our villain from book one is certainly reaping what she has sown. She left England, feeling betrayed by her sister, for Spain. Emotional pain, and physically injuries she sustained in the first book, cause her to turn to a cruel mistress - opium. We meet Ada in the throes her addiction, where she's literally at the point where she'll do anything for a fix. That's how she ends up in a brothel, and where our hero, Gavriel de Marqueda finds her.
Gavriel is inches away from becoming a monk and must complete one final test to prove his worthiness. His test? Ada. Clean her up, get her off opium, and put her on a path to a better life. The problem is that Gavriel is no saintly monk. He's a warrior, running from his past, his basest desires, and the evil he has committed. He wants to become a monk to atone, and now, standing in his way, is Ada. A woman so tempting, so challenging and so alluring, that no man is nearly saintly enough. Certainly not Gavriel.
My one requirement in romance novels is that the characters have free will. Good, bad, indifferent, I want them to have a choice (all "bad" choices are still choices nonetheless). Ada has made disastrous choices. One after another. This story details the consequences of those actions. Certainly nobody deserves to be an addict. But Ada made her choices, hurt people she loved, manipulated situations and people to suit her purposes. This is not a "nice girl" at the start of this story. She's not the type of heroine who goes skipping through the forest singing to woodland creatures. She's a hard woman.
The difference between this story and What A Scoundrel Wants rests solely on the hero's shoulders. Lofty has given us a classic wounded hero. Gavriel's childhood was beyond wretched. He's haunted by his past, desperate to atone, and willing to do just about anything to leave his old life behind. This is a hero, I think, most romance readers will be willing to get behind. He's determined to save the heroine from herself, live by the vows he has made, renounce his old life, and naturally along the way it all goes horribly awry. For that reason alone, I suspect this book will work better for readers who weren't enthralled by WaSW.
"Most men only take vows when they feel strongly," she said. "They believe. They feel connected to a higher ideal. They feel compelled - obliged even - to make a promise to God. They do not use them as a prison or a punishment. You've hidden from the world and put a cage around yourself."
Lofty continues to write different, challenging historical romances using unique settings (medieval Spain!) and characters. It's a shame her contract with Zebra has been fulfilled, and not renewed, because her rich tapestry of secondary characters are practically begging for future adventures (OMG - Jacob!). Whether or not you can roll with these types of characters and stories is incidental. Historical romance needs more risk-takers like Lofty, and sure as shootin' it needs more publishers willing to wander out on a limb. Not all different is "good" - but in this instance, I think it is. What a great way to start off 2010.
January 1 not only means the first day of a brand new, shiny year - but it's also launch day for the first round of the Harlequin Blogger Bundles! And what should greet me this morning when I clicked over to Harlequin's eBook site? This lovely banner. They even have a separate page set-up showcasing all the currently available bundles! How awesome is that? Way awesome!
Dear Author's bundle showcases Unusual Heroines, featuring stories from Harlequin Blaze, Harlequin Temptation (oh, how I miss that line!) and Harlequin SuperRomance.
We Write Romance has selected a bundle filled with four stories from Harlequin Presents.
Although I'm not seeing it over at the Sony store yet. Bummer!
So for those of you who do ebooks, I hope you'll consider downloading one (or all!) of these bundles should the spirit move you. I'd love to see one (or more) of the Blogger Bundles make Harlequin's Top 10 Bestsellers list.
Remember way back in July when I was at the RWA conference in Washington D.C.? Well while I was there I taped a video interview for Romantic Times with author Carrie Lofty. I just got word yesterday that our three-part interview is now online - just in time to promote Carrie's most excellent new book, Scoundrel's Kiss.
