Romance Meme

Sybil tagged me, and since I have nothing better to talk about at the moment, I'm going to comply. Here it goes:

Contemporary, Historical, or Paranormal?

Historical - they're my first love.

Paranormal - you really have to sell 'em to me these days baby. I've never been big into fantasy or sci-fi or woo-woo, so the author really has to make me forget I'm reading something that's "paranormal."

Contemporary - I like 'em, but wow! I can't remember the last time I read a straight-up contemporary romance without a suspense plot or vampires in it.

Hardback or Trade Paperback or Mass Market Paperback?
These days, mass market - only because I buy a shit load of books and mm is easier on storage. That said, nothing gets my rocks off quite like a shiny, new hard cover book. It's a librarian thing.

Heyer or Austen?
Um, neither? I've never been a fan of the Regency England era. Plus, Austen feels too much like "required" reading and Heyer? Have I said I've never been a huge fan of the Regency period?

Amazon or Brick and Mortar?
Brick and Mortar - except when I'm getting my erotica fix on. Then I like Amazon because I'm guaranteed to get copies where the spines haven't been bent all to shit.

Barnes & Noble or Borders?
These days - Borders. Only because I literally live around the corner from one and I earn gift certificates with my Borders credit card.

Woodiwiss or Lindsay?
Uh, neither? Never read 'em. I won't read Woodiwiss because hate that flowery purple prose shit. Hate it. I should try Lindsay though - every once in a while I like a throwback romance, and I think her earlier stuff would probably fit the bill.

First romance novel you ever remember reading?
Nevada Nights by Ruth Ryan Langan. Published in the mid-1980s and reads like it! A western about a convent raised girl who discovers her long lost family. Naturally not everyone in this newfound family is happy to see the girl, and there's a mysterious hero posing as a gunslinger to boot. Way over the top - but dang I just loved this book as a 16-year-old! The first "real" book (as in over 300 pages long) I read in one day.

Alphabetize by author Alphabetize by title or random?
In a perfect world - by author. In the real world? They're all mashed together in Rubber Maid totes. That said, I have them separated by "type." All my historicals are in one tote, all my Harlequins in another and so on.

Keep, Throw Away or Sell?
Keep the keepers, trade the rest to the used bookstore. The only books I throw away are ARCs that I can't unload at 1) work or 2) to buddies.

Read with dustjacket or remove it?
Read with it.

Sookie Stackhouse or Anita Blake?
Neither. I think I would really dig the early Anita books, but won't try them because everyone (and I mean everyone) tells me the series goes to pot.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
This drives The Boyfriend nuts - I need to stop at a "break."

“It was a dark and stormy night?” or ?“Once upon a time”?
It was a dark and stormy night. My first love is mystery folks and I adore (I mean really adore) romance novels written in a darker tone.

Crusie or SEP?
Uh, neither? Never read 'em.

Buy or Borrow?

Buy most of the time. I do use my library card though - mostly on hard cover books I want to read, but don't want to pay full price for. Oh and audio books. Get all my audio books from work.

Buying choice: Book Reviews, Recommendation or Browse?
All of the above. I go by reviews and recommendations first, but I'm a serious browsing whore. I love wandering through library stacks and bookstores just picking up titles that tickle my fancy.

Tidy ending or Cliffhanger?
Most of the time - I like it tidy. I tend to only tolerate cliffhangers in mystery novels. In romance, they tend to piss me off.

Morning reading, Afternoon reading or Nighttime reading?
Mostly afternoon. I used to love reading at night, but these days I'm too bloody old and just want to sleep once my head hits the pillow.

Series or standalone?
Again, mystery is my first love, so I'm a bit of a series whore. But only in mysteries. I like following the same character(s). In romance, I have enjoyed some series, but these days I'm really craving a nice stand-alone novel.

Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
Boy, lots! I read a lot of midlist authors, so most of my keepers are books nobody has heard of! How about, The Nightingale's Song by Kathleen Eschenburg? Totally fantastic, and since she's only published two books I don't think many people know her. Also, Breathless by Laura Lee Guhrke. Yeah, we all know Guhrke since she's now writing for the Publisher Who Shall Not Be Named - but this was an American historical with a totally wonderful librarian heroine who didn't make me want to hurl. Probably my favorite romance novel evuh!

But you want books nobody has ever heard of. How about The Brain And The Beauty by Betsy Eliot (Silhouette Romance 1605)? I'm a sucker for a Beauty and the Beast theme. Just nuts over them, and this book was so darn sweet (I need to reread it actually). It was her debut and then she just vanished! If anybody out there can give me info on Eliot, I'd love to hear it.

Will I be tagging anyone? Nope. Y'all are safe from me.