Woo-Woo Western

I absolutely loved Kate Lyon's previous release, Hope's Captive, which was a straight-up historical western romance with one of the worst covers to ever scald my retinas. Despite having a similar-sounding title, her latest, Destiny's Captive is unrelated to that book. It's a sequel, of sorts, to the author's debut novel, Time's Captive, which was a time travel (Read KristieJ's review). While I do think Destiny's Captive does stand alone, the fact that it's connected to a time travel romance should clue readers into the fact that, while it's essentially a historical romance, there's a healthy thread of woo-woo running through this tale.

Jeremiah Baldwin was the son of preacher man when his father's religious settlement (aptly named Baldwin's Fort) was attacked by bandits. They burned it to the ground, murdering everyone in sight. However, the man leading the raid saw a way to make a few extra bucks, so he rounded up the young men, one of which was our hero, and sold them off as slaves. Jeremiah eventually finds himself living with the Comanche, and taking the name Chikoba, becomes a fierce warrior. However when his wife and unborn child are murdered by U.S. soldiers, he is grief stricken. It's during a vision quest that the Great Spirit tells him to return to his childhood home, and uncover the truth behind his white family's murder.

Who he finds is Miguel Sanchez, a wealthy man who has turned the land into a thriving rancho, complete with gorgeous hacienda. However, when Jeremiah pays him a visit, the man isn't all that happy to see him. After he leaves that meeting, he's beaten to a pulp and left for dead. He's found by Sanchez's adopted daughter, Angelina ("Angel"). She has no idea the almost dead man paid a visit to her father, she just knows she can't leave him there to die. So with the help of some friends, she spirits him away to nurse him back to health. Unfortunately that is the start of a whole mess of problems. Angel's dear Papa has been keeping many secrets, and she has no memories of her life before he adopted her.

This story starts out pretty well. Jeremiah has a ton of baggage, and the mystery surrounding what happened at Baldwin's Fort is compelling. Giving a character a mystery to unravel is a good way to engage the reader. I was less enthralled with the mystical aspects of this story. Certainly, when connected to a time travel book, coupled with Native American religious customs, you're going to get some woo-woo. I'm a big enough person to admit this really comes down to a personal preference issue. Some readers will undoubtedly love the fact that wolves (yes, wolves) seem to follow Jeremiah around, while other readers will roll their eyes. But while I wasn't wild about this aspect, it really didn't sink the book for me. No, that was all Angel's doing.

I'll admit it, I tend to be a hard judge of heroines. I expect them to behave in a consistent manner and have a few brains in their heads (I know, radical notion). Unfortunately Angel comes off as both spoiled and brain-dead. Sanchez pampers her, and she tends to behave like a child all the while trying to convince her Papa that she's a "grown woman." The writing was definitely on the wall when very early on she takes it into her pea brain to flirt with one of the villains to try to uncover his secrets. Naturally she sucks at it, and lands herself in hot water. Then there's the small matter that her beloved Papa is a lying scumbag asshole that she blindly defends for three-quarters of the blessedly book.

Look, I get it. He adopted her. Doted on her. Sheltered her. It's only natural that she wouldn't immediately believe that he was capable of "bad stuff." But after a while, it just gets absurd. Even as more and more circumstantial evidence mounts, even as more and more things don't begin to add up - she vehemently tells Jeremiah that he's wrong. Her Papa would never do the horrible things he's accusing him of! Even when her father treats her badly, and accuses her of betraying him - she's still convinced he's innocent of any wrong-doing.

Seriously, I spent this whole book wanting to smack the tar out of this stupid twit.

Because of her idiocy, I had a hard time buying into the romance. For one thing, Jeremiah seems to get over his dead wife and unborn baby pretty darn quick (I guess I expected more angst on that issue), and for another, when they aren't arguing about her father, Jeremiah and Angel are boinking like bunnies. I didn't buy it. They never really "talked" and the author sort of skirts the "getting to know you phase" - but it made for a fairly weak connection. Also, for someone so naive, Angel practically ripping Jeremiah's clothes off really didn't ring true. She goes from pampered virgin to experienced courtesan faster than I can tear through a piece of cheesecake. And trust me - I'm pretty darn quick on the draw when it comes to cheesecake.

What Lyon continues to do well is plotting. This is a good story. The mystery, the secrets, the lies - all of it is compelling. Also, she has a knack for weaving in interesting history and real-life historical figures into her stories. I was particularly taken with Texas Governor Richard Coke, and some of the fictional secondary characters that played important roles in the story.

Unfortunately, when one of the main characters doesn't work for me (especially the heroine!) it's hard for the book as a whole to work for me. I kept wanting to rewrite her character, or add on another 200 pages to this story to make it into a saga. Give the author more time to work up a convincing transformation for the heroine, going from naive girl to woman confronted by the truth. That may have worked better for me. But as is, this one was disappointing.

Final Grade = D

Free Book Friday

I used to order quite a few of my Dead Tree Harlequins via their web site, and when I did - I always tried to order on Fridays because of their weekly free book offer. I've since gone digital for my Harlequin fix, but I still love to check out their Freebie Friday deals because....well, just because.

Today, October 30, the free book is none other than A Holiday Romance by Carrie Alexander. I reviewed this book earlier this summer for TGTBTU, giving it a B+. Making it one of the better books I've read this year.

Yes, I know the people on the front cover look like creepy plastic Stepford people - but this is exactly the kind of book I like to chuck at people who like to tell me (in a haughty, snotty tone no less) that all Harlequins have secret babies in them.

This little gem of a romance has no tycoons, no babies (secret or otherwise), no precocious toddlers, no amnesia, no whiff of pregnancy anywhere within the pages, and no cowboys. It's a nice, solid romance between two grown adults. Seriously. It's great.

So if you're thinking of putting together a Harlequin order anyway - why not do it today and get this lovely little book?

Little Miss Crabby Pants Declares Us Our Own Worst Enemies

The older I get, the less tolerance I have for stupid people.

It never ceases to amaze me how romance readers can be their own worst enemies. We bitch, we moan, we rail at all the ignorant non-romance-reading morons out there who label the whole genre "bodice rippers" or "trashy Harlequins." We take to our blogs and message boards. We write letters to the editor. We get all righteously indignant, smug and point out how stupid "they" all are.

Yet, as romances readers we do the exact same thing. To the genre we so profess to love.

Mrs. Giggles got the ball rolling for me with her recent post on erotic romance, which was spot on and just plain wonderful. There's a reason people keep visiting her site, and this piece is a prime example. You also get the added bonus of Mrs. Giggles feeding the trolls who showed up. Bless her heart. I mostly ignore trolls because (see above) my low tolerance for stupid people.

Then on Twitter yesterday, Jessica pointed out the Blogs Suck Major Donkey Ass thread over at the AAR message boards. Sigh. Why? Why?!?!?! What is with the Us Vs. Them mentality that crops up within our community? I hate to be the bearer of obvious news, but no one of us is "better" than the other. No one of us is more "right" than the other. My personal favorite comment from that thread is when someone accuses blogs of being "insular." OK, are blogs insular? Certainly. But so are the damn AAR message boards! Oh. My. God. Pot, meet kettle. You two make such a cute couple.

The final straw for me came from this Dear Author thread on cultural appropriation. Jane, I like you. I respect what you've done with Dear Author. But some of your regular commenters make me want to put my fist through a wall. My favorite gem from that monstrous thread has got to be:

"If I want to read different, but I know that, say, Superromance puts out white, middle-class, mid-America, baby-abounding books, I won’t even be looking for that different book there."

Seriously. Someone save me from the stupid.

Are there middle-class, mid-American, white people having babies in Harlequin SuperRomance books? Um, yeah. But there are middle-class, mid-American, white people having babies in a shit-load of romance books. Harlequin doesn't exactly hold the market share on that. Also, I found this sweeping generalization rather intriguing since two of my favorite Supers of this year featured an ex-con hero (and no, not for a white collar crime) and a heroine bartender. I've read Supers about construction workers, cops, firemen, ranchers, web designers, you name the profession, it's probably been represented in a Super. But no. It's just so much easier to paint an entire line of books with one big ol' brush than to actually, you know, educate yourself about the line. Do you see me going around saying all Harlequin Presents books are about Alpha asshole heroes and brain-dead virginal heroines? No. That would be because, um well, they're not.

Romance readers get all het up when someone "outside" who doesn't "know" the genre makes sweeping generalization, but we do the exact same thing! Do you know how incredibly frustrating this is? Especially for this librarian who spends entirely too much time trying to educate her colleagues that not all romances are in the vein of bodice-ripping rape fantasies?

I'm not suggesting we all have to love everything. I'm not suggesting we all have to embrace every single sub genre. If you don't like to read category romance? Fine. No skin off my nose. But don't make sweeping generalizations that they're all secret baby, tycoon, amnesia books. If you don't like hot sexxoring that pushes the envelope? Nobody is holding a gun to your head saying you have to love and read erotic romance. But don't then go on a message board, or your blog, or wherever and say you don't read erotic romance because it's all badly written porn that appeals to the lowest common denominator.

Newsflash: No sub genre is all one thing.

Not all erotic romance is badly written porn. Not every single Harlequin published is loaded with stereotypical, traditional female roles where the heroine wants to get knocked up with triplets by the epilogue.

If a sub genre doesn't work for you? After you've tried several different authors and books? That's fine. But then don't go around talking out of your ass. If you don't like certain blogs or message boards? That's fine too. Don't visit. But also don't go around bashing their very existence just because you might not like them. Because all any of this does is make you look stupid and shines a poor, low-wattage light on the community as a whole.

A community where not all of us are stupid assholes.

Calling All Harlequin Junkies

Every year my employer wants me to take on a special "project." Essentially something that goes above and beyond my normal job duties. In the past I've done everything from weeding, to committee work (blergh!), to giving a reader's advisory talk on the romance genre. I had my annual review this month, and once again, as am I sure will shock no one (Ha!), it was declared in writing that I am full of awesome. It also means it was time for me to come up with a new "project."

This year the lucky winner is Harlequin. Our branches receive a crap-load of donations, and naturally Harlequin is a healthy representative. The problem? Most of our librarians are confounded by those little category romances. They have no clue where to begin, what they should think about cataloging, and what should be tossed on a cart to sell for 10 cents. I proposed my idea to my boss (who naturally loved it) although I will admit that in the back of my mind I figured the librarians were likely to roll their eyes heavenward and mutter, "Oh dear Lord, Wendy is blathering about romance novels - again."

That is until I went out to a branch a couple of weeks ago and the adult services librarian swept her hands around her office and said, "Wendy, I got five big grocery bags full of Harlequin donations and I have no idea what I'm doing. I added those titles we already had in system at other locations and they've already checked out! Now I'm at a loss. Help!"

Oh Wendy, you're a frackin' genius.

So I'm in the process of putting together a presentation on all things Harlequins, with a strong focus on the category lines (although I plan on mentioning the single title lines like MIRA, HQN, and Spice as well). Now, I need some help from you all.

I want to mention those now-defunct lines from recent memory. The lines that libraries are likely still going to get donations from, but that line itself is no longer in existence at Harlequin. Here's the list I've come up with so far:

• Silhouette Intimate Moments (renamed Silhouette Romantic Suspense)

• Silhouette Romance (folded into Harlequin Romance)
  

• Harlequin Next

• Silhouette Bombshell

• Harlequin Temptation

• Harlequin Everlasting Love (folded into Harlequin SuperRomance)

• Silhouette Yours Truly/Harlequin Love & Laughter which beget Harlequin Duets which beget Harlequin Flipside

I'm also going to mention Bantam Loveswept and Zebra Bouquet - even thought they were never affiliated of Harlequin. They're still category lines, and we still do occasionally get Loveswept (in particular) donations. So probably worth mentioning.

So my question is: am I missing any obvious discontinued lines? Lines that were just discontinued within the last...oh ten years or so?

Excuse The Mess

Yeah, I basically unplugged this weekend. No bloggie for Wendy. Did y'all miss me? Heh - probably not. Anywho, unplugging also meant that my brain was on vacation, which means no post on one single topic. Yep, y'all are getting a list. Here are a few of the things rattling around in my brain at the moment:

• Will someone please shoot the Gosselins' and put me out of my misery already? OK, that's probably harsh - especially since I feel sorry for those kids and their dumb luck that they were saddled with idiots for parents. But why? Why am I constantly subjected to the Gosselins' every time I go to the supermarket, turn on the TV and/or radio and get on the Internet. Go away. Both of you. You suck. To the rest of you: this is the kind of crap we get bombarded with when y'all endorse reality TV by actually watching it.
  

• Yankee fans, your long national nightmare is over. You're going to the World Series for the first time since 2003. How oh how did y'all ever survive the drought? (Yeah, this would be sarcasm). I probably won't be watching, but at the beginning of the season I picked the Phillies to repeat. Of course I only made this declaration to My Man, so if the Phillies win only he will appreciate how supa-smart I am.
  

• Steve Phillips was fired from ESPN for failure to keep his Mr. Happy in his pants. Already sued for sexual harassment back when he was GM of the Mets, he got involved with a 22-year-old whack job who showed up at his house and contacted his 16-year-old son through his Facebook account. When will these sports guys learn? If you're that hot to cheat on your wife, for heaven's sake, hire a professional. In the meantime, wife Marni has filed for divorce. I normally don't condone vindictiveness - but take him for every penny you can honey.
  

• I've been enjoying reading everybody's comments on the Bat Cave Consumer Survey. Keep 'em coming.

• Since nobody in Hollywood is capable of an original idea, there are talks of rebooting the Dallas franchise. I loved Dallas. Loved that show. And I especially loved Linda Gray as Sue Ellen. She's apparently in talks to reprise her role, and for that reason I might watch one episode. If only to get my Sue Ellen fix.

• Movies like Paranormal Activity make me go a big rubbery one. I managed to watch five minutes of the Blair Witch Project and it was 4 minutes and 59 seconds too many. Seriously. I don't get it people.

• I am not getting a flu shot and no I'm not getting it for any conspiracy theory reasons. I never get a flu shot, mostly because I'd feel guilty that I was taking the shot away from someone who needs it more than I do. I don't have any pre-existing medical conditions. I don't have little kids or anyone remotely elderly at home. In the grand scheme of things, I'm pretty low risk. So low risk that I can't remember the last time I had the flu (that's how long it's been). The secret to my success? I drink enough tea to sink a fleet of ships (Antioxidants - Mmmm, mmmm, good!). But just in case, My Man and I are taking our vitamins and being diligent about the hand washing. You know. Normal, common sense precautions everyone should do all the damn time. I know. We're wacky.

And that's it. Hopefully I'll get back into the swing of things soon. In the meantime, feel free to sound off in the comments section.

Bat Cave Consumer Survey

This is what happens when you flit in and out of Twitter. You miss brouhahas. There was apparently one yesterday, courtesy of a New York Times article. The uproar stemmed over (what else?) the sharing of e-books. I'm not going to rehash it here. Dear Author can give you the scoop, and my opinion on e-books as a whole has not changed since I wrote this piece for Romancing The Blog back in June.

Instead of wading into the Dear Author fray (sorry Jane, I'm just not up for it today), I thought I'd spin this whole thing in another direction. I'd been kicking the idea around anyway as potential blog fodder, and this brouhaha is too convenient to ignore. Specifically, what are the book buying habits of other readers?

I've never made a secret of the fact that the main reason I'm a participant in the romance reading community online is that I love "talking" to other romance readers. I love reading different opinions. I love hearing about what everyone is reading. I love hearing about what you like and don't like. And to be honest? I'm a librarian. I could talk books non-stop, all day long, and I'd be one happy girl.

So to satisfy my curiosity, and just to talk books, I'd love to hear about how everyone "gets" their books. How do you keep yourself in reading material? To kick it off - I thought I'd share mine.

• What I Buy New:

Hard cover books for those authors I can't wait for in paperback. This is a very select number. At this point? Maybe only 3 or 4? Any mass market paperbacks I just have to have. Especially historicals, and especially if it's a western. Any western that lands on my shopping list is bought new. It's my pathetic attempt to show publishers that some of us still like to read them. A select number of trade paperbacks. Depends on the author and genre - but these are mostly erotic romance or erotica.

• What I Get From Work (The Library):

All my audio books. The only time I buy audio books is for my father, for either his birthday or Christmas. I love 'em, but damn, they're expensive. Also, any hard cover books or trade paperbacks I'm not willing to fork over my own cash for. Authors whose last few books weren't that great for me, new-to-me authors, authors who I should probably give up on....but can't. Also, since I've been moderating a romance panel for our annual literary event for the past several years - I tend to get almost all my "homework reading" through work.

• ARCs, Swag And Buying Used:

I accept a small number of ARCs that I review for the blog. And by small number, I mean small. The Bat Cave has no staff of reviewers. Folks, it's just me. If I had to put an estimate on the number of ARCs I accept? Not even one a month. Seriously. It's a handful a year.

I'm getting some of my Harlequins through Sybil these days, and am reviewing them for her (although I've been slacking lately because of an evil slump). This has been great, because it's allowed me to travel "outside my comfort zone" of Harlequin Historical and Harlequin SuperRomance and try some of the different lines, with no "risk" to me, other than I might have to read and review a book I didn't like.

I do pick up swag at conferences, and swap print books with the So. Cal. Bloggers. These generally tend to be books I'm "on the fence" about. New to me authors I'm curious to try. Authors whose last book I wasn't in love with, but I wanted to give them another go. That sort of thing. Also, I unabashedly pick up any YA books at conferences and give them to the Lil' Sis for her classroom. She teaches high school English, keeps a small lending library in her classroom for her students, and most of those books are bought with her own money (OK, so she gets a tax write-off for it - but still). So yeah. I take freebies for her and the kids, usually disclosing this fact to authors when I do (and let me tell you, they're usually more than happy to know that's where the book is going.)

I'm also a member of PaperbackSwap, and love frequenting used bookstores. These days I reserve both for out-of-print titles and those "on the fence" books I mentioned above.

• What I Get In "E" And What I Get As Dead Tree:

98% of my Harlequin reading is done electronically these days. I still pick up Dead Tree Harlequins for out of print titles (that aren't available in e-format) or if the book is a keeper. I know it's warped, but I like seeing "tangible" keeper books. It probably sounds silly, but it makes me happy, so there you go. I still go with Dead Tree for everything else - unless I want to read it while I'm traveling. Then I get it in e-format and load it on Ye Olde Sony Reader.

Are your eyes glazed over yet? I can't help it - I truly am this dorky. I never get tired of talking about stuff like this. The rest of you might have fallen asleep. However, just in case you haven't - feel free to share some of your habits in the comments section. Or better yet? Take it over to your own blog. Because heaven knows I rambled on for a while....

Bronwyn Parry Contest Winner!

Today is the day the Bat Cave announces the winner of the super-awesome-neat-o Bronwyn Parry Contest. The winner will receive copies of both As Darkness Falls and Dark Country.

Thanks to the wonders of Random.org, the lucky winner is commenter #7. And lucky #7 is...

Tara Marie!!!!

Ms. Tara - please drop me an e-mail (which you can find here) with your shipping address, and I'll pass it on to Bronwyn. She's the one who will actually be mailing out these books, and since she's in Australia? Yeah, be patient. But trust me. So worth the wait!

For the rest of you unlucky folk - the UK edition of As Darkness Falls (the first book in the series!) is available for purchase over at Book Depository - which offers free worldwide shipping. Free shipping! For a UK edition! Trust me when I say you don't get that offer every day - especially when you live in North America.

Thanks for playing along at home everybody, and many thanks to Bronwyn for graciously offering this contest to Bat Cave readers.

Crocodile Tears

Anyone else been following the Walmart/Amazon/Target hard cover bestsellers pricing wars with interest? I know I was pretty excited about the possibilities of $9.99 (and now $8.99) bestsellers (hey, maybe I'll go back to buying Patricia Cornwell - who really could use the money, it seems). Then I read the fine print. These retailers are only offering these incredible deals online. So no walking into Target or Walmart and picking up a $8.99 John Grisham hard cover. Bummer.

I see this is a big boon for the holiday shopping season. Despite what the evening news keeps trying to tell me, the U.S. economy is far from robust at the moment. And if I'm any gauge, I know that my online shopping reaches a peak at holiday time. I live thousands of miles from most of my family, so buying online and shipping packages to my parent's house has been a lifesaver ever since I moved out west.

But other than that? It's highly unlikely this price war will effect my book shopping one way or the other. For one thing, I buy very few hard covers as a rule (only Tess Gerritsen, Laura Levine and Loren Estleman) and I don't read a ton of bestsellers (honestly, Gerritsen's about it). Also, when I order books online, I'm either downloading ebooks via Harlequin or I'm ordering erotica. To this day, I still make about 90% of my erotic romance and erotica purchases online. And frankly, neither Walmart or Target are going to start carrying Harlequin Spice, Black Lace, Avon Red, Kensington Aphrodisia and Berkley Heat titles any time in the near future....hell, ever. So free shipping or no free shipping, it's unlikely I'm going to click on Walmart.com or Target.com to buy one book. When I buy books online, I'm not buying just one. I'm buying four, five or six. Because that's how I roll.

It's been interesting to follow the various discussions online. I think Jane might be on to something when she speculates that this may "lead to the erosion of hardcovers altogether." A lot of readers believe hard cover = "real" book. Naturally, that's a bunch of horse-hooey, but this belief does exist. Will hard covers still be seen as "real" books if you can get a brand new John Grisham for $8.99? And what will that mean for mass market paperback pricing? I mean, hello?! A brand new paperback tends to cost around $7.99!

Other commentary online is focusing on the poor independent booksellers, who can not compete with these deep discounts.

Excuse me while I go cough up a hair ball.

I tend to get bitchy when anyone mentions those poor, unfortunate independents to my face because I've had nothing but terrible experiences with them over the years. By and large all independents have done is sneer, turn up their nose, and dismiss the romance genre (and therefore, it's readers). I'm obviously a brain-dead moron for reading such drivel and so incredibly stupid that it's a wonder I could figure out how to open the door and walk into their store.

So yeah, excuse me while I don't feel sorry for the independents.

Now certainly, there are exceptions. You have independents like Turn The Page Bookstore, which a lot of readers rave about. Although I'm not sure that one counts since the owner is married to Nora Roberts, and therefore obviously has a brain in his head. Also, I've been in some fabulous romance friendly used bookstores over the years - some of which even sell a selection of new titles on the side. But since their bread and butter tends to be "used" - I'm not sure they count either.

Which is why I keep throwing my money around at evil "big box" bookstores like Borders and Barnes & Noble. For me, it all comes down to selection. I know what I want. I know what I like. And I'm going to give my business to whomever can provide that. If you won't? I'm not darkening your doorstep. Viva la capitalism!

All of which leaves me with what, exactly? I still don't feel sorry for independents (learn to help yourselves assholes!) and all this hullabaloo is unlikely to change the way I buy books. At all. However, I'm still left with one question (OK, two). Will these deeply discounted books be enough to sway buying online-phobes to changing their ways? Will they get past their dislike and/or discomfort to save a few bucks to get the new Stephen King? And will this be enough to make Walmart a real threat in the online marketplace?

Time will tell.

The Librarian's Dirty Secret

Today we're going to talk about the one aspect of library work that generally horrifies the public and that some librarians drag their feet on. Yep, I'm talking weeding. That process where librarians actually get rid of books. As in, take them off the catalog, stamp them "discard" and either 1) toss them in the nearest dumpster or 2) give them to the Friends Of The Library to sell.

The horror!

My experience with weeding is that the public doesn't understand it, and that some librarians really suck about doing it. Weeding has to be done people. It's part of the circle of life in Library Land. As much as we would like them to, books just plain flat-out wear out. Spines get busted. Pages turn crispy brown. And accidents happen. Someone drops the book in the bathtub. Or leaves it outside in the rain. A curious tot thinks it's a neat-o new coloring book. Or the dog thinks it's a tasty new chew toy. Shit happens. Sometimes literally (ewwww!) to library books. So they have to go.

When it comes to fiction, I tend to preach condition, condition, condition. Always weed on condition, first and foremost. Look people, I don't care if the darn book is The Great American Novel, if it looks like it was buried in someone's backyard for the past 10 years, it's time for it to go. If it's truly that important and vital, sooner or later some publisher will realize they can make money off it and reprint the darn thing.

But weeding is sometimes about hard choices. I had to make one today. Yep, it's time for my library to say goodbye to The Tender Texan by Jodi Thomas. Published in 1991 and currently out of print. According to OCLC, we have the only copy in the entire state. We've been housing it in our closed-stacks-storage section for a while now, given it's borderline fragile, not- so-appealing condition. This bad boy has been a circulation stats machine. We've sent it hither and yon. However, when I stumbled across it today in our InterLibrary Loan department, I knew it was time for it to go.

You know how the paper in mass market paperbacks goes yellow? Well this book has gone right past yellow and is now the color of dirt. The discoloration has gotten so bad, that the dirt brown is now bleeding past the margins and landing on the first few words of each line.

Ewwwww.

In the grand scheme of things, considering it's a 18 year old paperback that has circulated 67 times in the past 6 years, it could probably look worse. That said, it didn't look anywhere near "good." So even though we had the last copy in the state, and even though it circulated a ton for us, it's time for it to go. The Tender Texan has moved past tender, and is now overcooked and chewy.

So yes, while a little piece of me died inside - I weeded it.

Because that's how all good librarians should roll.

Oh, and in case anyone at Berkley is reading this? Maybe it's time to reprint some older Jodi Thomas. Just sayin'.

Assuming I'm doing my math right (always doubtful) this book circulated 32.6865 times every year, for the past 6 years. That sounds awfully high though. Especially when considering a 3-week check-out period. I wonder if this was an instance where our circulation stats actually carried over from our previous automation system? Either way, I'd say we got our money's worth out of the $4.95 this title originally cost. Holy crap!

And since I'm sure someone will bring it up in the comments section, yes - an ebook version would be nice. However I don't see libraries throwing print out on it's ear anytime soon. So yeah, print would be good.

SuperWendy's Top 16

Best known for her book, Forever Amber, author Kathleen Winsor, who passed away in 2003, would have been 90 years old today. In honor of her work, her life, and her all-around awesome-ness, our dear sweet Maili thought it would be fun to honor her birthday with a list of our Top 16 Romances. I think this is a smashing idea, and many thanks to Jessica for promoting it on her blog. Quite a few of these I've blogged about before, but dang, I couldn't very well leave them off my list. So here it goes. In no particular order:

1. Breathless by Laura Lee Guhrke - American Historical, Early 20th Century, Stand Alone - My favorite romance novel ever. Small-town librarian who is ::gasp:: divorced (!) wants to shut down local brothel. Some of the brothel's best customers, powerful, politically connected men, ask hero to intervene. The hero just happens to be the attorney who represented the heroine's scumbag, asshole ex in the divorce proceedings, and who essentially "won" the case by dragging heroine's reputation through the mud. Yeah. She's less than happy to see him rolling back into town.

2. The Firebrand by Susan Wiggs - American Historical, 19th Century, Book 3 In Trilogy - Suffragette heroine rescues baby being dangled from hotel balcony during the Great Fire Of Chicago. Fast forward five years, and heroine discovers her daughter's father is alive, well, and a powerful man. I loved this one because of the strong, yet vulnerable heroine. Also, one of the all-time great romantic scenes, where the hero and heroine kiss for the first time. Dreamy sigh.

3. I Do, I Do, I Do by Maggie Osborne - American Historical, 19th Century, Western-ish, Stand Alone - Three very different women find out they've all be wooed, wed and swindled by the same con man. They can't stand the sight of each other, but track the asshole all the way to Alaska at the height of the Yukon Gold Rush. That's where they meet their very own heroes. But where's the con man? And are any of them actually married? It's hard for me to pick my favorite Osborne, but this was the first one I ever read, so it wins.

4. The Nightingale's Song by Kathleen Eschenburg - American Historical, 19th Century, Part Of Two Book Series - Irish immigrant heroine with plans to become a nun gets attached to a young girl at the orphanage where she works. Turns out the child is the hero's by-blow, who just found out of the girl's existence, and is still haunted by the Civil War. Great history, great emotional intensity, just fantastic. Eschenburg only wrote two books, and then dropped off the map. RT reported in 2004 that she had breast cancer, and she recovered. If anyone has news of her, I'd love to hear it. This book rocked my world.

5. Courting Miss Hattie by Pamela Morsi - American Historical, 19th Century, Part Of Loosely Connected Series - Spinster, not very attractive, heroine finds herself with a suitor thanks to her prime farm land. Her best friend, the hero, has worked her farm for years and, even though he's engaged to the prettiest, brain-dead girl in the county, finds himself jealous. Then they share what was supposed to be an "innocent" kiss and whoa doggie!

6. To Dream Again by Laura Lee Guhrke - English Historical, Victorian, Stand Alone - You want emotion? Look no further. After her husband's death, heroine has worked her fingers to the bone making their factory a marginal success. However, now the bank is calling in her loan because ::shock:: she's a woman! With no husband! Enter the hero, stage left, who knew the heroine's dead husband and wants to use the factory to build....children's toys?!?! The heroine is scared, not to mention sick and tired of men who dream big but lack the follow-through. She thinks the hero is cut from the same cloth as her ex, only to discover just how wrong she is.

7. Bad Moon Rising by Katherine Sutcliffe - Romantic Suspense, Contemporary, Stand Alone - This book rocked my world when it was first published. It also turned off some of the more "conservative" (yeah, let's go with that...) romance readers who were horrified by the premise. Heroine is a former prostitute who gets a phone call from a panicking friend (who is still hooking). A serial killer is stalking the working girls of New Orleans. The hero is a disgraced attorney who fell into a bottle (and off the deep end) when a serial killer murdered his family. Dark, gritty, and oh how I wish Sutcliffe was still writing. Last I heard she was happily retired. Obviously she did not get the memo that it's all about me. Damn her.

8. Gossamer by Rebecca Hagan Lee - American Historical, 19th Century, Stand Alone - Heroine comes to San Francisco to meet up with her brother. Turns out though that brother is dead thanks to a raging opium addiction he picked up in Chinatown. Heroine eventually lands on the widowed hero's doorstep and is hired as the nanny to his four daughters. All Chinese girls he adopted after they were abandoned. OK, so it's probably not terribly realistic, but for the record: I don't care. My niece, The Fairy Princess, is Chinese (and adopted) so I have a soft spot for this book. I e-mailed the author (many moons ago) after reading and loving this story - and at the time (if I'm recalling correctly), she said the book didn't sell that well, but it had generated (by far) the most "fan mail" for her. Go figure.

9. A Reason to Live by Maureen McKade - American Historical, Western, Book 1 In Trilogy - I've blogged about this book a ton already. Heroine was a nurse working the front lines during the Civil War and now suffers from post-traumatic stress. She thinks she's going crazy, so her final mission is to deliver the dying words of some of her patients to their families. Along the way she meets the hero, a man desperate for any news about his son, who joined the war effort despite his objections. An emotional gut-puncher of a story.

10. Dirty by Megan Hart - Erotic Romance, Part Of Loosely Connected Series - Some would argue this isn't a romance, but I beg to differ. A self-destructive heroine who wields sex like a weapon meets her match in the hero, a man determined to love her. Whether she wants him to or not....

11. Hearts by Stef Ann Holm - American Historical, early 20th Century, Book 4 In Series - Heroine is suspended from her teaching job after discussing human sexuality with her female students. She travels to Montana to visit a pregnant friend, and tired of being seen as an athletic freak of nature, is determined to be "feminine." She runs up against the hero, a former body builder who now runs his own gym. He's immediately intrigued. Most women fall all over his muscles, while this one? She acts as if she's immune to his "charms." Totally and utterly delightful.

12. The Long Way Home by Cheryl Reavis - Silhouette Special Edition, Contemporary, Part Of Series - Heroine's dreams of being a Vegas showgirl go bust, so she heads back to her tiny southern hometown to regain custody of her daughter, who she essentially dumped on her ex. While home, she finds out her best friend, a military man, is in the hospital with injuries he sustained in the line of duty. There she runs up against the hero, also in the military and also injured. He's ornery as hell and she's feisty as a wildcat. Sparks immediately fly. A complex heroine trying to redeem herself after some disastrous life choices. Category romance at it's finest.

13. The Bride Fair by Cheryl Reavis - Harlequin Historical, 19th Century, American Historical, Part Of Series - Reavis is one of the few authors whose contemporary stories work just as well for me as her historicals. This one takes place post-Civil War. The hero is the occupying commanding officer in the town where he was once held as a prisoner of war. He's staying in the home of the heroine, which has been commandeered by the troops. They were on different sides during the war, and the heroine is shouldering her fair share of burdens and resentment. And yet? They can't seem to stay away from each other.

14. Prairie Wife by Cheryl St. John - Historical Historical, 19th Century, Western, Stand Alone - Another one I've blogged about tons. A marriage in trouble story about a couple that runs a way station for the local stagecoach. After the death of their toddler son, the heroine shuts down and the hero falls into a bottle. Stuff happens that shows them they need to wake up and save their marriage.

15. Nate by Lori Handeland - American Historical, Western, Book 5 In Series - I loved all the Rock Creek Six books, but this was my favorite by Handeland. A preacher turned gunman, the former Confederate soldier hero has lost his family, his faith, and has been slowly drinking himself to death. The heroine has been drawn to him ever since he and his friends rolled into town, and she's determined to save him from himself.

16. Cash by Linda Devlin - American Historical, Western, Book 6 In Series - See above. This is book six in the Rock Creek Six series, and one of my favorites because I was half in love with the hero by the time his book rolled around. Part charmer, part reprobate gambler, and very deadly with a gun, trouble finds him in the form of the heroine, his first and only love, who hunts him down looking for help with her son. Or should I say....their son. Uh oh.

And that's it folks. Hope you enjoyed reading this list. I know I had fun digging through the Bat Cave Keeper Stash. Many thanks to Maili for the fun idea!

Outback After Dark

As some of you may recall, last year I reviewed Bronwyn Parry's debut romantic suspense novel, As Darkness Falls. The catch being that it was published in Australia and wasn't available in the States at the time. Naturally, since I enjoyed that first book quite a bit, the publisher was keen to send me the second book in the series, Dark Country. Again, only available in Australia. But take heart curious readers! Read my review, and then see the end of this post.

Morgan "Gil" Gillespie left the bush town of Dungirri with no intention of ever returning. Half the town thinks he's trash. The other half thinks he's a murderer. But after selling his successful pub in Sydney, he comes home to see local cafe owner, Jeanie Menotti, about some unfinished business. Instead he's confronted by townspeople who aren't happy to see him, his life in Sydney following him out to the middle of nowhere, and the body of a dead prostitute stuffed in the trunk of his car.

Kris Matthews is the local police sergeant in Dungirri. The town has seen it's fair share of troubles, ranging from drought, to unemployment, to the hunt for a child killer (see As Darkness Falls). When Gil rolls into town, bringing a whole host of trouble with him, she goes with her gut. And her gut tells her that while some people in town think he's bad news, she knows that he's not guilty of anything they've accused him of. Even with a dead body found in the trunk of his car, there isn't much evidence to speak of. So she doesn't lock him up, instead getting him to talk. That's when she knows that real trouble has once again landed in Dungirri. Because the child killer may be gone, but now organized crime has rolled into town.

One of the things I really loved about As Darkness Falls was how "dark" the story was. That tends to be a common complaint I have against some romantic suspense fare. The author pussy-foots around the suspense, and doesn't explore the scary corners. Parry doesn't shy away from tough subjects, although the "dark" isn't nearly as pervasive and oppressive in Dark Country. On that score, I suspect it will work better for those romance readers who shy away from heavier reads.

That said, on the flip side of that coin we have Gil. There is definitely a segment of the romance reading population who want their heroes to be above reproach. I wouldn't call Gil an "anti-hero," but he is guilty of getting in bed with the wrong people. Because of his connections, good, innocent people do get hurt over the course of the story. As he tells Kris, in order to make a good life for himself after his stint in prison (naturally, he was wrongly convicted), he made a deal with the devil. Should he have? Probably not. But at the time, he saw it as his only option, and he took it. I bought into this, and did think of him as a "good man." But if you're a reader who wants your heroes to be squeaky-clean? Yeah, Gil isn't your guy.

The highlight of this story for me was Kris. So often in romantic suspense novels, with cop heroines, the author downplays her assertiveness and makes her "weak" somehow. Either by putting her in danger or having her lose her brain in a too stupid to live moment. Kris is just a flat-out good cop. She's good at her job. She has good instincts. And the best part? She's not a ball-buster. She commands respect because she's a damn good person and damn good at what she does for a living. Yet, she's still feminine. She's still a woman. And she's smart. Heaven help me how I love smart heroines! She thinks logically, and uses her brain. So while some people want to string Gil up by his toe-nails, she looks at (get this!) the evidence.

Parry does have a lot going on in this book, and at times she has to throw one ball in the corner while she's juggling the others. She does get around to tying up the threads, but it does require some patience on the part of the reader. Also, while the suspense is really good here, the romance takes a bit more of a backseat in this story. Oh, don't get me wrong - it's there. That said, it helped tremendously that the author ends this story perfectly. There's a short time-table for Dark Country, with Gil and Kris knowing each other for about a week. Them walking down the aisle and her pregnant with triplets in the final chapter would not have worked, and I'm glad Parry went with the ending that she did.

This was another fine romantic suspense read from an Australian writer that really needs to get published here in the States. Yes, there are Australian-isms in this story, but nothing so mind-altering that this ignorant American couldn't follow along. Also, the town of Dungirri isn't that far off from some of the economically depressed areas in the United States (this story could easily have been set in my home state of Michigan). Parry's in the process of writing the third book in this series and I, for one, can't wait.

Final Grade = B-

Contest Alert! Bronwyn Parry has agreed to give away a copy of As Darkness Falls and Dark Country to one lucky commenter on this blog post. Wahooey! Contest open to international readers (obviously, since Parry lives in Australia!) and a winner will be chosen at random on Wednesday, October 21.

For those of you who don't want to enter, or don't win? As Darkness Falls (UK edition), the first book, is now available via The Book Depository (free worldwide shipping!). Dark Country is only available in Australia right now, although the author has heard it should be published in the UK sometime around March-ish.

Frothy Goodness

For those of you who know me in my mild-mannered librarian guise, you know that I'm the last woman on the planet to ever get excited about kitchen gadgets. I'll be blunt. I don't really thrive in the kitchen. Oh sure, I love to eat. I don't like to cook. My time spent in the kitchen can be be compared to the sexual misadventures of a teenage boy. His heart's in the right place, but most of the time he's fumbling around in the dark, not quite sure if he's "doing it" right.

Something unfortunate happened to me recently. I got myself addicted to Starbucks Earl Grey Tea Lattes. This is not good people. And frankly, no good can come to me (or my wallet) by getting addicted to anything at Starbucks.

I'm a hard core tea drinker, and I tend to drink it "straight." Sweetened. No milk. So color me surprised that I got myself addicted to a tea confection that takes steamed milk. Mmm, mmm, good!

But, back to my poor wallet. The siren song of Starbucks Earl Grey Tea Lattes was getting quite loud. So while out shopping with My Man this weekend, I came across this handy steamless milk frother. Yep. For $20 I was willing to try it and break free of the shackles of Starbucks. And boy howdy, it works! I'm now enjoying myself a nice tasty, English Breakfast Tea Latte as I type up this blog post. Mmm, mmm, good! Tasty!

In other news, our dear sweet Nathie is in southern California right now thanks to a family wedding. A bunch of us got together yesterday and hit Borders. Today, me, Nath, Tracy, Renee and (maybe) Lori are hitting a local used bookstore. I suspect I'll just end up browsing. I looked at my wishlist recently, and it was so woefully out of date, I just deleted the darn thing (I know, the horrors!). Plus, I'm still in a dreaded reading slump, and even I can't justify buying a crap-load of books when I'm not, um, really reading.

Sigh. Nobody likes a whiner Wendy.

Blogging At Borders

Yep, two guest blogging stints in one week.

Today finds me over at the Borders TrueRomance blog blathering on about one of my favorite topics: Romance Heroines. Love 'em! Can't get enough of 'em!

Yeah, yeah - I know most romance readers fell in love with the genre thanks to the mullet-wearing (business up front, party in the back!) hunky heroes who wax their chest hair, but me? I'm all about the heroine.

Ahem, anywho - head on over, check out my post, leave a comment, and reminisce about your favorite romance heroines. Go on now. You know you want to.....

Obligatory Disclosure Post

Since the FTC has now revised their guide on endorsements (and if you don't know what I'm talking about, check out Dear Author's posts on the topic), I figured what the hell? Everybody else is doing one, so why not do my very own disclaimer post! I suspect 99.99% of you could give a rat's ass, but if I do this post, I can then bury the link on my sidebar and never have to deal with this boring crap ever again. See, it's win-win! Plus, I don't think I've ever talked about this stuff before, so it's probably good for me to let it all hang out (as it were).

1) I am a member of Amazon Associates. This means when I link to Amazon, and you click on that link, and you then purchase the product, I get a small "fee" for referring you. I mostly did this on a lark, since I use Blogger, which is a free service, and unlike the bigger blogs out there, I don't have any web hosting costs and am not too concerned with postage costs for contests (since I rarely run contests). So far, since signing up for the program in the spring of 2007, I've made less than $90. Yeah. Small potatoes thy name is Wendy.

Guess it's a good thing I didn't impulsively quit my day job. Ha!

I also use my Amazon Associates ID when linking over at my Upcoming Historical Romances wiki. I justify doing this because - hot damn! Do you know how much time I spend working on that thing? I know it doesn't look like much; basically it's just a list with some pretty cover art. But chasing down that information and getting it posted does take some effort on my part. If I can earn a few pennies for the time I spend on it, I'm going to take them.

Linking to Amazon does in no way constitute an endorsement of any kind on my part. I link just as readily to books that made my eyes bleed as I do to books I want to have babies with. If you don't want to put any money in my pocket? That's cool. No skin off my nose. Don't click on any of my Amazon links and then don't put the book(s) in question in your shopping cart. Easy peasy. And we can even still be friends.

2) I do, on occasion, accept advanced copies of books from authors and publishers. In no way does receiving these ARCs "earn" an author or publisher higher marks when it comes to my reviewing. If I hate the book, I'm going to say I hated it. Regardless of whether or not I got it for free. If I loved it, I'm going to tell readers of this blog why I loved it. Simple as that.

I've been reviewing online since 1999, and in that time never once has my objectivity been called into question (well, at least to my face). I sort of resent that it is now - even though I've hardly been singled out. But whatever....

To make it easy, when I'm reviewing an ARC on this blog, I will now add "ARC Review" in the tag field at the bottom of the post. I will start doing this as of today, October 8, 2009. Since I have yet to go back and do general tagging on the bulk of my archives? Yeah, don't expect me to retroactively tag my older ARC review posts. Even if I could remember what reviews were for ARCs, frankly? I don't wanna.

And so ends this disclaimer. Yada, yada, yada.

A Thousand Deaths

First things first, I'm over at Romancing The Blog today talking about Great Moments In Romance Genre History. OK, maybe it's not quite that involved. Still, I spent a fair amount of time banging my tiny pea brain against the proverbial wall trying to come up with a topic for this post - so why not go on over and check it out? Maybe leave a comment? C'mon, you know you want to.

In other news, for those of you insane enough to watch last night's tie-breaker between the Tigers and the Twins, now you know what the hell I've been going through all year long. Everyone is now talking this morning about what a great game it was, and how it's an instant "classic."

Horse hooey.

By my count, the Tigers stranded 349 base runners last night. You cannot win games when you strand base runners, and you sure as hell don't win games against the Twins doing that crap. You cannot leave the door open on the Twins. They will, sooner or later, waltz right on through it. Which is what they did last night. So once again I get to watch the Tigers do a late season swoon, while the Twins, once again, kick on the afterburners and finish strong.

Sigh.

Oh well.

Not that it matters much.

In theory it doesn't really matter who won the American League Central because on paper the Yankees should mop the floor starting today. Of course the playoffs are kind of funny. So often it's not about the best team, the all-star players, or who even had the better record during the regular season. Nope. It's all about who gets "hot" at the right time. And the Twins could, in theory, get hot after last night's emotionally draining win. We'll see though. My money is still on the Yanks (damn their black, merciless souls) although my heart is now rooting for the Angels.

As for the National League? Watch out for the Cardinals. As for that other southern California team? Joe Torre or no Joe Torre coaching them, I don't believe in the Dodgers. Sorry L.A.

The Month That Was September 2009

Brace yourself. I'm going to whine.

I've been mired in a horrible reading slump. The kind of slump where I don't feel like picking up a book. At all. I'm trying to power my way through it, but it's been rough going. It doesn't help matters that my reading lately has been pretty lackluster. A lot of "C"s and I've read a grand total of two "A" books for the entire year.

Seriously, I'm dying over here people.

I'm trying. I really am. But at this point I sort of feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water. Worse still, is that this reading malaise is starting to spill over into my blogging. I just can't seem to find my groove. At all.

Oh well. Suck it up Wendy. Nobody likes a whiner.

Which brings us to my pathetic recap of the reading I got done in September. I read seven books last month, two of which were short stories - so I'm not sure they count. Title links will take you to full reviews. Here's how it breaks down:

Highland Rebel by Judith James, historical romance, Restoration England, My Grade = B+

• This would be the best read of the month. The heroine started out rocky, but after I got past the first 50 pages, this book really cooked for me. I loved the history and setting, enjoyed the devil may care hero, and yes - the heroine grew on me once the author filled in her back story. I wasn't enamored with the author's debut novel (which was almost a DNF for me), and I was happy that me giving her a second chance paid off.
  

The Daddy Audition by Cindi Myers, Harlequin American, Contemporary Romance, My Grade = C-

• Myers' last several books have all been set in the same small mountain resort community. Earlier this year I read a previous book in the series, and really enjoyed it. So I thought I'd try the next book in the series. I'm sad to say it didn't work nearly as well for me. When the heroine wasn't self-absorbed, she was pretty dense. I couldn't figure out why the hero spent the last 10 years mooning over her.
  

The Countess's Client by Alison Richardson, Spice Briefs, Historical Erotica, Short Story, My Grade = D+

• This erotic short story started out with such promise thanks to an engaging narration style, but it quickly went down hill with snobbish, boorish characters and a bizarre twist at the end. I think the author can write though, so I'm going to read the next short story in The Countess Trilogy. What the heck, right? It's a short story!
  

The Warrior's Forbidden Virgin by Michelle Willingham, Harlequin Historical Undone, Medieval Romance, Short Story, My Grade = B

• The heroine is marginally rocky here (pining for another man) but the hero is so wonderfully deliciously Beta that he picks up the slack. Lots of action and derring-do keep the plot humming along, and I'm looking forward to reading the full-length tie-in to this short story, Taming Her Irish Warrior.
  

From Friends To Forever by Karen Templeton, Silhouette Special Edition, Contemporary Romance, My Grade = C+

• I really enjoy Templeton's category romances, and sadly this one was just OK for me. I felt there was a fair amount of series-itis going on here (it's book four), and the conflict surrounding the hero's dead wife was a little too conveniently wrapped up. Nice characters, but thought the conflict needed some more juice.
  

Silent Watch by Elle Kennedy, Silhouette Romantic Suspense, Romantic Suspense, My Grade = C-

• Ultimately it was the cliches that sunk this book for me. The hero is a damaged FBI agent who blames himself for his fiance's death. The heroine is a drop-dead gorgeous swimsuit model (blah), who has a serial killer stalking her but that doesn't stop her from doing dumb shit that puts her in danger. Swear to God, she keeps wanting to go outside to do inane shit like play in the snow! Hello? Serial killer on the loose? Remember him? Some of the relationship stuff was OK, and I liked that the heroine called the hero on most of his bullshit. Too many bad romantic suspense cliches though.
  

Texas Wedding For Their Baby's Sake by Kathryn Albright, Harlequin Historical, Western, My Grade = C-

• My most disappointing read of the month, and if I'm honest with myself now, I probably should have graded this a D+. The characters don't talk to each other - to the point where the hero keeps pushing the heroine away "for her own good" and the heroine, who travels from South Carolina to Texas to find the hero!, doesn't come right out and tell him he's her baby daddy the moment she lays eyes on him. The revelation is dragged out until towards the end of the book, where the hero proceeds to continue his pity party. Luckily the heroine reaches down deep, finds her damn spine, and that saved the last third of the book for me. I was also mightily annoyed that the hero in the previous book I adored was a raging jackass for most of this story.
  

Four C grades. That probably has something to do with my slump. Also the fact that three of those C grades were attached to books where previous books in the same series worked really, really well for me.

Oh well.

Suck it up Wendy. Suck it up.

Urban Renewal

For those of you who thought about me this weekend, why yes - the Detroit Tigers are trying to kill me. Instead of, oh I don't know, playing some offense and actually, oh I don't know, hitting the baseball - they've decided to make life interesting. So instead of doing something really radical like, oh I don't know, not dicking around and just winning the American League Central division already - we now have a tie-breaker game on Tuesday against the Minnesota Twins to look forward to.

Since I know you're all dying to know what I think, I'll tell you.

Tigers lose.

Why? Because even if our pitching staff shows up and has a spectacular game, the Tigers have shown all year long that they can't hit the baseball. So unless the pitching staff all turn into .350 hitters and we decide to play National League rules on Tuesday, I don't see the Tigers in the post season.

I know. Aren't I just the little killjoy?

I hope I'm wrong - but I don't think I am.

A lot has been made of the Tigers postseason run (at this point, dreams) because of what a clusterfuck (yeah I said it) the city of Detroit is. I'm a Michigan girl, through and through, but even loving the area as I do, it's hard to look at Detroit and the state as a whole, and not want to weep these days. While a lot of people in the country didn't start feeling the effects of the current recession until recently, the Midwest (and I'm lumping western New York state in here as well) have been feeling it for years. I moved to California five years ago because of it.

Five years ago.

And if I'm honest with myself, the writing was on the wall before that.

People in Michigan tend to have a healthy disdain for Detroit. First there's the resentment in the belief that if Detroit fails, the entire state is screwed. Also, it's hard to love Detroit when there has literally been decades of ineptitude and corruption. It's easy to be pessimistic about the city, especially with countless examples of urban decay, poverty, a horrifying unemployment rate (28.9% - no lie), and despair smacking you in the face.

All that being said, Detroit is still a city worth saving. Despite it's multitude of problems, there are good people in that city, fighting the uphill battle of trying to resurrect it. Will they be successful? Who knows? But in the meantime, Time magazine has decided to follow the story. They bought a house in the city, and plan to spend the next year profiling all things Detroit. The industry (such as it is), the politics, the people. Will the coverage be all about how terrible everything in Detroit is? Well OK, there is some of that. But there's also some hope. And Michiganders are nothing if not hopeful.

Go Tigers!

Follow Time's Assignment: Detroit coverage.

Gold Rush

I have a bit of a soft spot for romance author Ruth Ryan Langan. She wrote the first romance novel I ever read, which incidentally (and this shocks no one) happened to be a western romance. I wouldn't recommend anyone go trolling for Nevada Nights these days, since it's loaded with 1980s awesome sauce (convent-raise heroine, a mysterious gunslinger named Colt ::snort::, a soap opera-style plot that probably could have saved Guiding Light from cancellation), but as a doe-eyed teen (I was probably 14-ish), I inhaled that book. Not only was it my first romance novel, and my first western historical, it was also the first "grown-up" book I read in one sitting.

Oh, and I probably shouldn't discount the s-e-x. Ahem, anywho....

Langan has been writing for years, for a variety of publishers, and I discovered recently that she's moving over to Grand Central and has a trilogy due out in early 2010 (under a new name). I'll admit, the premise of the series does give me pause. Every reader has certain plot lines they've had bad luck with. Well, mine is long-lost gold mines/nuggets/whatever. Honestly, it's probably just my dumb luck, but every historical western I've read featuring long-lost gold has made my brain bleed.

But again - soft spot for Langan. Also this is a contemporary trilogy, not a historical. Plus, we can't discount the cowboys on the covers. Yep, I really am this shallow. Obviously you've just stumbled on this blog.....

Overview Series Description:

He was called a crazy old coot by the folks of Gold Fever, Montana, because he'd spent a lifetime searching for the sack of gold nuggets discovered by his ancestor, and stolen by a greedy prospector who was later found dead, the gold missing. The name stuck, and Coot McCord passed on his legacy to his three grandsons, challenging them in his will to carry on the treasure hunt.

Cousins Jesse, Wyatt and Zane McCord had grown up under the same roof, not only blood related, but best friends, until the fabric of their family began to unravel, and their parents chose separate paths. Now adults, they are drawn into their grandfather's obsession, but they will have to overcome many obstacles on their path to regain the easy friendship they had once enjoyed.

Montana Destiny by R.C. Ryan, March 2010

Description:

She was the one person who shook Jesse McCord’s quiet determination. She was the only one he ever let in, body and soul. Then suddenly Amy Parrish left without warning — or a word — and the oldest McCord cousin devoted his life to the family ranch. Now Amy is back, caring for her ailing father and offering Jesse help in finding the legendary McCord gold. With luck, his pride will keep him safe from her irresistible charms — and his own unexpected desire...

Amy isn’t about to give Jesse a second chance. She’s keeping her assistance strictly business, even if the hungry look in Jesse’s eyes is getting harder and harder to resist. But under the wide prairie skies an unseen enemy is fast closing in, threatening Amy and Jesse’s very lives and the promise of their...

Montana Destiny by R.C. Ryan, May 2010

Description:

Wyatt McCord looks more like an eternal surfer than a cowboy. After traveling around the globe, he is brought back to Gold Fever by the death of his grandfather, and challenged to take up the search for the legendary McCord fortune. But Wyatt finds an even greater challenge in Marilee Trainor, a free-spirit who handles the town's emergency runs and pilots her own plane. When she decides to aid Wyatt in his treasure hunt, she finds herself in the line of fire by someone bent on preventing Wyatt from reaching his goal.

Montana Glory by R.C. Ryan, To Be Announced

Description:

Zane McCord put in some hard time growing up in Hollywood, until he found purpose with Steven Michaelson, a renowned director of documentaries. When he returns to Gold Fever, he must put in more hard time proving that he has what it takes to belong on his grandfather's ranch.

Kate Mason is struggling to raise her two little daughters while juggling a day job at a local day care and working nights at the Fortune Saloon. Her first night at the saloon is a disaster, and Zane steps in to save her from being fired. When he learns that she was an art major in college, he puts in a good word with his aunt, a bit of an eccentric, but an amazing artist, who happens to need an assistant. Kate and Cora are a perfect fit. But because of a painful divorce, Kate isn't about to allow herself to admit to the feelings that Zane stirs in her. As for Zane, the family's avowed bachelor, he's certainly not ready for a ready-made family.

As the cousins draw ever closer to the lost fortune, there are those who are determined to stop them at any price.

Can Zane and Kate overcome the many obstacles to discover both love and fortune?