On the Road + #EverAfterBox Review

April has been a bit of a lost month, what with my parents arriving at The Bat Cave for a visit, me taking six days away from the office, killing two car tires (one on My Man's car, one on mine), and then, inevitably, having to go back to work after six days off to scramble around playing catch-up. But I have popped up in other places even if this blog has been a bit quiet.  

First, I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers with my most recent Unusual Historicals column.  I do this column monthly folks - which means if I see anymore whining on Twitter about "Boohoo I'm so tired of Regency and why don't they publish books that aren't Regencies?" in my feed I will pop up to slap you into next Tuesday.

Second, I'm over at Vassiliki's Shallowreader blog being featured in her latest Sharing the Shallows. Find out what I really think about reading in the bathroom, what romance trope I will loathe with my last dying breath and if I think guys who drive hatchbacks are worthy of being romance heroes.

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Arriving just in time for me to celebrate surviving my first full week back in the office, the latest Ever After subscription box showed up. I don't regularly subscribe but when I saw the theme for April, Librarians In Love, I mean how can I be expected to resist that?! 

For those who are unfamiliar with the Ever After box, it's roughly the size of a child's size shoe box and typically contains several books (a mix of print and digital downloads), book related swag, and sometimes swag related to the theme at large.  This month you can nominate your favorite local library and Ever After will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sale of this box.

So what was in this month's box?  Well, I have to be honest - nothing here that really surprised me. However, that being said, I try to keep up with librarian-related romances - so yeah.  It would have been more shocking if I had been completely caught unawares.

Contents:

• Card detailing contents of the box
• Quarterly Mini-Magazine sponsored by All About Romance
• Library themed bookmark and note card from Olivia Dade (I got a set of these at RWA last year and they are super cute!)
• Library check-out card socks
• Book light from Kelly Maher 
• Colored pencils in case featuring vintage library poster art
• Coloring card designed by Elizabeth O. Dulemba
• Print copies of The Undateable by Sarah Title and The Librarian and the Spy by Susan Mann
• Download card for Labyrinth of Love by Allie Boniface 

For the most part I liked this box and I really liked how they tied together the theme.  Besides the featured librarian romances I received, Dade, Maher, Title and Mann have all worked, or still work, as librarians.  

The only inclusion to the box that has me scratching my head somewhat is Labyrinth of Love which, as far as I can tell, is about an architect/builder-type hero and a "local historian" heroine who, according to a GoodReads reviewer, works at a tourism center.  So....library?  Librarian?  Anywhere? I guess I'll have to read the book to find out!  

Final Verdict = If you're a sucker for librarians in romance novels this is a solid purchase. I'm unlikely to be a regular subscriber, but I have a hard time saying no to Ever After when there's a theme I'm a sucker for - and you have a one-month plan option.

Lord help me if they ever do a Boss/Secretary or Virgin Hero box. 

Link-O-Rama-Jama: Book Thingo Podcast, Unusual Historicals & Archives

One of highlights of attending the RT Book Lover's Convention was getting to meet fellow bloggers who I hadn't met in person yet.  One such blogger was Kat from Book Thingo, an Australian institution in the romance community.  She asked to record a podcast with me, and given that I never can seem to pass up an opportunity to blather on about romance novels (and there's a lot of blathering...), I said yes.  So we commandeered an empty conference room and viola!  This is the result.

A minor correction - I'm no longer selecting adult fiction for Orange County, but that's where I was when I was awarded RWA's Librarian of the Year in 2011.  I've since moved on, and up the ladder, with a different employer :)

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 I somehow managed to get my monthly column of Not-Your-Usual Historicals to Heroes & Heartbreakers in July.  Come for the books featuring "bad girls," steamy desert locales and Gothics - stay for the insidious Katy Perry ear-worm.

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And she e-mailed me an update ages ago - but my Real Life has largely been swamped so that e-mail got buried under a giant pile of other e-mails and well....

Here we are.

Some time back I had a nice chat with archivist Caryn Radick on a paper she was writing about how romance writers use archives in the course of their research.  You can access her paper online and completely nerd out on all things library archives and romance novel research.

Viva Las Vegas!

Long story short: this blog has been a dead zone.

A more thorough excuse?  I haven't been reading (at all - it's been really sad) and my time online following whatever Outrage Du Jour (I'll admit it - I'm outraged-out) has been limited.  So yeah, not a lot to blog about.

But it's time for me to pop in and say, "Hey! I'm taking off for Las Vegas!"  That's right, I'll be hitting my first ever (Lord help us all) RT BookLover's Convention this week.  I'm already incredibly overwhelmed by the conference agenda because 1) there is so much to do...OMG! and 2) Wendy doesn't do "costumes."  So yeah.  I'll be dressed like a librarian (OK, my "these are the clothes I wear to work" wardrobe). 

I hope to meet / see a lot of you there.  Alas, I will not be blogging during the conference.  Right now my lone mobile computing device is my smart phone (and I don't like blogging enough to tackle it on a smart phone).  But I'm going to do my best to cross-post conference shenanigans (I promise - totally family friendly AND safe for work) on Twitter and my blog's Facebook page.

I'm also going to try not to drop my life savings at the blackjack table or run off and marry an Elvis impersonator.  Baby steps Wendy.  Baby steps.

Wendy News Round-Up: Home, On the Road and Finally!

It's that time again: Update Time!  So what's going on in the world of Wendy?  Well, first off - I died a few thousand deaths Saturday night while taking a break from Downton Abbey binge watching to check Facebook - only to discover that my hometown had made the national news.

Most blog readers know I'm from Michigan, but may not necessarily know I'm from the Kalamazoo area.  My parents still live there.  My older sister lives there with her family.  Not to mention the friends I still have in the area.  Oh, and there's an active shooter driving around randomly shooting people on a Saturday night.  

I was a little freaked.

I was more freaked when I found out after the fact that my entire family (Mom, Dad, Sister, Brother-in-Law, the Two Kids) were all out that night taking in a show at Western Michigan University's Miller Auditorium.  On the same side of town where I used to live.  On the same side of town as two of the crime scenes.  While the active shooter was driving around and randomly shooting people.  So....yeah.

My nearest and dearest are all safe and sound, but there's something very disconcerting about having your hometown make the national news.  To see people politicizing your hometown on Twitter and Facebook.  Kalamazoo is a city, but it's a small city.  Almost cozy.  Certainly Kalamazoo has crime, it's not perfect, bad things happen there just like anyplace else, but a guy driving around just randomly shooting people?!  Prior to this we were known for our funny name, a song (I got a gal in Kalamazoo...) and a tornado that ripped through downtown in 1980.

Now, like so many towns in this country, we're known for a mass shooting. And that's messed up.

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I've had several blog posts and reviews go live over the last couple of months, and since I'm terrible about doing monthly recaps these days I thought I'd post them all now.

I've had two semi-recent reviews post over at The Good, The Bad and The Unread - both Harlequins.  Snowy Mountain Nights by Lindsay Evans (Kimani) and Holiday with the Millionaire by Scarlet Wilson (Harlequin Romance).

I've had two First Looks go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  Countdown to Zero Hour by Nico Rosso (romantic suspense) and One More Night With You by Lisa Marie Perry (Kimani).

Also at H&H?  February's Unusual Historicals column.  Go forth!

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So guess what?  I finally saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Meh.

Look, it was OK.  The cast was good, but the storytelling was a lazy rehash.  Take two parts A New Hope, one part The Empire Strikes Back and add a dash of Return of the Jedi.  I spent the whole time watching it thinking, "Oh, so there's a cute droid wandering around the desert looking for someone - that's not familiar AT ALL ::cough cough:: and that's the new Luke and that's the new Han and that's the new Yoda..."  Then they completely skip the new villain's backstory entirely because OF COURSE!  They must have fodder for more movies which means we'll likely have to relive the whole prequel debacle again.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

It's a solid popcorn movie but y'all who thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread?  I mean, why not just stay home and watch the original first three movies over again?

Oh yeah, money.  Disney wants to make money.

But cranky Wendy is being cranky.  I'd probably feel differently if I had kids and took them to see the movie on the big screen - to let them have their very own Star Wars experience like I did back in the day. But yeah, for me?

Meh.  It felt like a remake masquerading as a sequel.

And tomorrow I take away candy from babies and rain on more parades.  Probably a C+ for me (the casting WAS good and I liked how they utilized Han in the story).

Notes from the Bunker

I haven't blogged in over a week and seeing that many days of inactivity in a row on the blog tends to make me twitchy.  For the past thirteen years of Bat Cave Gloriousness, I've tried to be fairly consistent with blogging - posting anywhere from once to three times a week.  And yet, here we are.  So to fill the void y'all are getting a hodge-podge.

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I spent most of 2015 mired in a reading slump and it seems to have carried over to the start of 2016.  It's not that I'm reading "bad" books.  It's more like I don't have the energy or mental brain power to pick up a book and actually read.  I'm traveling over the weekend so I'm hoping being stuck in airports and on airplanes provide a kick start.

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I still haven't seen Star Wars.  Yes, I'm an extra special kind of unicorn.

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In bookish news - I got through The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo on audio.  This was a recommendation from Keishon and I liked it, but wasn't over the moon in love with it.  I'm glad I listened to it because I truly don't think I would have lasted reading the print version.  It's a long book, with loads of set-up, dual time lines (World War II and early 2000s) and the mystery is fairly intricate.  There's a very deliberate pace to the story which made it slow-going at times.  I did end up enjoying it (it was a B read for me), and I'll continue on with the series - but Nesbo doesn't strike me as the kind of writer I'm going to be able to "binge" on...even in audio format.  I'm going to need breaks in between books.

I'm in the process right now of listening to When Books Went to War: The Stories That Helped Us Win World War II by Molly Guptill Manning.  This is another book I'm glad I'm listening to on audio because I think it would be a slower read for me.  I have a lot of thoughts about this one - mostly when you juxtapose the history of the World War II home front against the current climate of the American public.  It's really striking.  Also I'll admit I'm highly annoyed that ultimately the librarian's efforts early on were dismissed out of hand when they were up against something they couldn't control - format.  World War II was really when the paperback format took off in popularity (in large part because of paper rationing and publishers having to adopt the format to fit the serviceman's unique needs), and librarian-organized donation drives mostly collected hard cover books, because that's what was widely available.  Also the profession, by that time, had shifted to largely female-dominated so yet another example of how "those in power" slapped down the librarians (who were a bunch of women anyway so what did it matter?) gets my hackles up.

Baggage, I haz it.

Anyway, I'm not massively in love with this book (yet - I'm only about halfway through), but I could see it provoking some good book club discussions if you have the sort of book club that could discuss historical vs. current events without breaking out into fisticuffs. 

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Speaking of book clubs - coming up in February I'm taking part in a webinar for the library database NoveList which will be all about romance book clubs.  It's being moderated by Lisa Schimmer, RWA Librarian of the Year 2014 (and the bee's knees) and we'll be joined by Jennifer Lohmann, Harlequin SuperRomance author, librarian and all around good egg.  Jennifer has run several book clubs for her Day Job (and has a romance-centric one!) and they've asked me to join the discussion to talk about the TBR Challenge!  That's right TBR'ers - we're going to be famous.

Also, I encourage you to check to see if your local library subscribes to NoveList.  It's what we in the profession call a "reader's advisory" tool - and it's fun to search subject headings, browse the lists of suggestions and hunt down titles that may interest you.  It covers all ages, and while it's predominantly known as being a fiction tool, they do feature non-fiction as well.  Lisa's been instrumental in overhauling the romance lists - where you can now find everything from Men In Kilts to Lesbian Love Stories.

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The plan was to spend most of 2016 catching up on ARCs I did not get read in 2015 (because I suck like that - SO MUCH TO READ!!!!).  I've got a pile of great books waiting for me and I'm at the point where I have things scheduled in a queue.  Here's hoping I find my reading mojo while turning over rocks in the Bat Cave bunker...

Everything I Left Unsaid

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today with a First Look of Molly O'Keefe's Everything I Left Unsaid.  First Looks aren't really designed to be traditional "reviews" - and my writings at H&H tend to be a bit more "professional" than my writing here on my own personal blog.  So for the sake of full disclosure, here's some nitty-gritty details about my reaction to the book that didn't make the cut over at H&H.

1) This did make the cut on the H&H piece - but it bears repeating....

THERE IS A CLIFFHANGER!

The second book, The Truth About Him is due out in November though, so the wait shouldn't kill you.

2) This is a departure for O'Keefe.  The sex scenes are on par with erotic romance, but I'd label them Hot Vanilla.  Some kink (hey, there's a voyeurism scene in a strip club), but nothing overtly shocking if you've been around the E/R block a time or two.  Also, it's not a non-stop boink fest.  The sex is hot, but it's not on every other page.  This is part romance, part women's fiction and part suspense.  I've seen some references to "New Adult" - but the heroine is 24, and the hero is 29 so.....yeah, I'm having a hard time with the NA label.  Unless we're now labeling everything angsty as New Adult - in which case shoot me now and get it over with.

3) The heroine grew up on a farm, in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma and her mother had "issues."  Hence the heroine was VERY sheltered growing up.  Then she married her husband who is an abusive asshole.  So she's inexperienced, naive and a little innocent.  The hero is turned on by her innocence - which smacked of fetishizing (is that a word?) to me.  This is a LOOOOOOONG standing pet peeve of mine (Issues. I Haz Them.) but I can recognize that other readers may not read it the same way, or have the same reaction that I did.  So take this for what you will.

4) Motorcycle Club Ahoy!  Sigh.  But to be fair to O'Keefe, at least her MC guys aren't criminals masquerading as heroes.  No, they're just criminals.

5) The writing style is....well it takes some getting used to.  The heroine portions of the story are told in first person.  The hero portions are told in third person.  So you get this deep point-of-view for the heroine, but not the hero.  It was....odd at times.  That said, given the cliffhanger ending, I've already started my ARC of The Truth About Him and it flips.  Hero = first person POV.  Heroine = third person POV.  So there you go.

6) I have no idea how to grade this.  I'm pretty sure it's not an A, as I don't think I'll ever reread it.  But it's really good - even with my quibbles.  So probably a B+.

Head on over to H&H to read my entire First Look.

The book comes out on Tuesday, October 13.

Librarians Blogging, Recent H&H Posts & Going Dark

I'm over at Read-A-Romance Month today talking about the "joy of romance" in the form of "emotional truth."  Or in shorthand, Why Wendy Reads and Loves the Genre.

You can also read my secret confession about actors named Chris, and enter a to chance to win a prize pack from the RWA Conference that was in New York City this past July.  Over there I call it a "mystery box," but you dear blog readers get an actual photo (see right) of the goodies to behold.  Print books, ebook download cards, swag, and an official RWA tote bag (which is super nice, a quality canvas tote bag).

The drawing is only open to US residents (because I suck) - but you should check out all the posts at RARM because oh my, lots of authors, lots of giveaways, lots o' fun.

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I've been kind of lax with posting my various Heroes & Heartbreakers ramblings over here.  In case you've missed it - I still post a monthly column on Unusual Historicals.  Here is the most recent post for August.  I'm a put-your-money-where-your-mouth-is kinda gal - so yeah.  Instead of b*tching about All Regency Dukes All The Time, go out and support the different when you can.  I know, we all have budgets to live with.  Will all of these Different Historicals be winners?  Heck, are all Regency Dukes winners?  But you won't know unless you try. 

I also had a post up recently about the wondrous world of delicious sexual tension, detailing three stand-out books I've read so far this year.  A just-kisses historical, a PG-13 historical and a steamy contemporary erotic romance.  Great sexual tension can be found all over the genre, you just have to be lucky enough to find it.

And as always, if you look under the links section on the right-hand sidebar of this blog - there's a direct link to All Wendy at H&H anytime you need to catch up.

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This blog will be dark pretty much all of next week as I'm going to be traveling on business.  In lieu of blogging I hope to find some good eats, some quality vino, and some time to actually, oh I don't know, read.  Being trapped on an airplane is usually how I get a lot of reading done.  So hopefully I'll have some books to chat about once I land back at Bat Cave Central next weekend.

Behave yourselves while your Auntie Wendy is away, and be kind to each other.

On My Way!

Today's the day! I'm on my way to RWA in New York City! For those of you looking for me this week, here are the places I guarantee I'll be: At all the librarian shenanigans on Wednesday, making the rounds at the Literacy Signing, and afterward I'll be in the conference hotel bar sorta, kinda hosting (but not really) a get-together for online folks to stop by, say hello, have a few drinks, have a few laughs.  If you've got time after the Literary Signing, swing by the bar and track us down.  We never have any set "end time" - just whenever everybody is so tired they head upstairs to the their room to crash.

I'm going to try to blog while I'm in New York (ha ha ha ha!).  Some years I do better than others.  My goal this year?  Try to blog a couple of times and not lose my voice (I ALWAYS lose my voice at conference. ALWAYS.)  See in the Big Apple Romancelandia!

RWA Bar Bash, Book Binge And Binging On Books

The reason the blog has been a dead zone is because I spent most of last week traveling.  First, visiting my sister, then spending time in San Francisco for the ALA conference (more on that in a bit).  It also kicked off what is promising to be a very busy summer for me.  Next up?  RWA.

This year's Romance Writers of America conference is heading back to New York City.  The first time since 2011, also affectionately known as Wendy's Librarian of the Year year (and no, I never get tired of pimping out that award even though it's been four years.  I earned it folks. I'll be tooting that horn until I'm dead.  And even then I might come back as a ghost and toot some more.)

I'm a terrible hostess, but do think it's nice to set aside a time for a bunch of us who kick around online together to meet up at the conference.  So if you've got nothing going on after the big Literacy Signing on Wednesday, July 22 - stop by the conference hotel bar to have some drinks and laughs. 

I'll be kicking around the entire conference, including speaking at Librarians Day (again) - so if you see me, come on up and say howdy.  I'll teach you the secret librarian handshake. 

Even if you can't attend the entire conference, if you're in the area please DO attend the Literacy Signing.  It's awesome, open to the general public, is free of charge, and the only cost to you is any books you buy at the event.

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While I was away on my travels, I had a guest post go live over at Book Binge.  I'm featured in their awesome Five Books Everyone Should Read feature.  Go on over.  See me pimp out books.

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Speaking of books, by sheer dumb luck I seem to have had a couple of highly touted new releases fall in my lap.  You know, on top of the giant pile of ARCs already living on my Kindle.  Long-time readers of this blog already know that I don't read a ton of bestselling romance.  I lap up categories.  I devour midlist historicals.  I'm reading erotic romance written by people not named EL James.  But there are two releases coming up that even I, Wendy who ignores most bestsellers outside of work, am curious about.

Lord help me, the first is The Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward.  I read exactly one Black Dagger Brotherhood book (the second one) and while I saw the attraction for other readers, it wasn't for me.  Mostly because of the insipid dialogue (you feel me?) and heroines (all the complexity of wet dish rags).  Plus I'm not a huge paranormal reader, so it was easy for me to move on.  But this series?  It sounds like Dallas and Dynasty got together and had a baby.  I am, without a doubt, an unrepentant sucker for soap operas.  The trashier, the better.  I put myself on the waiting list at work, but shot for the moon asking for a copy via NetGalley - which Penguin actually approved for me. So I have to try this.  We'll see how far I get.  Will I DNF or finish it?  Will Ward's writing ticks drive me insane?  Only time will tell.

Next up is Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas.  Now I'm not a huge squee'ing Kleypas fan girl.  I've liked some of her books. But she's been away from historicals for five years.  If you look at the genre in the past couple of decades (at least) - when a historical romance author goes contemporary, they rarely come back.  Kleypas is coming back (although yes, she's obviously still working on her contemporaries).  So naturally I cannot help but be curious, but figured that with all the anticipation that Avon would probably have a tighter rein on advanced copies.  So imagine my shock (literally, shock) when while wandering around ALA last weekend I saw a giant pile of Kleypas ARCs at the Harpercollins booth.

A giant pile.

And yes, I realize this is a horrible tease - but unlike some conference attendees, I try not to be an ass.  I took three.  And I felt like an ass taking the three.  One for a librarian at the conference stuck in a workshop, one for me, and one for KristieJ.  Because I could NOT not get one for Kristie.  Look up Squee'ing Kleypas FanGirl in the romance dictionary and there's Kristie.  It was my civic duty.  Plus, you know, she's my RWA roommate.  If I didn't get her an ARC she would have probably smothered me with a pillow.

So yeah.  Sorry to be a tease everybody else.  But thank you to Harpercollins for being nice to romance reading librarians.  Because really, it was a lovely surprise to see those ARCs.

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I'm slowly beginning to get my reading mojo back (thank you Charlotte Stein - review to follow), which is a good thing since I have a ton of books waiting for me.  Westerns, Harlequin Historicals, the above mentioned Ward and Kleypas.  Lots to read, little time to actually do it.  Story of my life.

Git Along Lil' Doggie!

I've over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today talking about some of my favorite historical western romances.  I've pimped out quite a few of these in the past (on this blog), but hey! There are some newer additions to the Western Carousel of Goodness at least as far as Wendy is concerned.

I limited myself to only seven, because really - the title for the blog post I came up with was just too good to not use.  So head on over, read about some westerns, and git ye downloading some samples to try!

Wendy Blathering At Other Places

I was out of commission last week thanks to the yearly visit from The Parents - but that doesn't mean I've been entirely quiet.

• First up, I did a two-part interview, which also featured kick-ass librarian Kristin Ramsdell, over at USA Today's Happy Ever After blog.  The topic du jour was, yes we're still on this folks, the romance genre canon.  Part I discusses potential inclusions (as Kristin and I see it) of canon titles/authors and Part II discusses the idea of "canon" itself as it pertains to libraries and librarians.

• Next up, Kim over at the SOS Aloha blog dug up this "lost interview" I did with her way back in 2010 in honor of National Library Week.  Kim is super-duper nice, does a lot of great work with military families (being a military spouse herself!) and is hosting a giveaway in conjunction with this interview - so head on over and leave a comment for your chance to win some goodies.

• And finally, if you're in the Southern California area on Saturday, April 25, I'll be moderating a romance author panel at the lovely La Mirada Public Library featuring authors Sabrina Sol, Jill Sorenson and Genevieve Turner from 2:00PM-4:00PM.  Fun times to be had, along with a book signing and light refreshments afterward.  Stop by and see us if you're in the area!

Round-Up: RITAs, H&H and My Final Word (Uh, Maybe)

In a moment of genuine happy-happy-joy-joy in Romancelandia yesterday, RWA announced RITA and Golden Heart finalists for 2015.  The list is now complete and you can head on over to the RWA site to check it out.

I was one of the folks who voiced displeasure at last year's process which saw 300 nominees in some categories and, like, two in others.  Look, I'm not widely read in Inspirational romance, but I had a hard time believing only two books were worthy of finalling last year.  So it was nice to see RWA right the ship and color me impressed with this year's list of nominees.  I personally feel there is a nice mix here, with authors of color representing, m/m nominations, and a strong showing by self-publishing.  Is it all perfect and rosy?  No.  But I think this is a step in the right direction.

I have roughly five of the nominees in the TBR Pile of Doom.  I hope to reprioritize my reading and get some of these read before I head to conference in July.

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My latest list of Unusual Historicals has gone live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  And on a similar note, in light of recent events, I've updated the disclosure page here at the Bat Cave.

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I know we've hit saturation point on the latest Bombshell Du Jour here in Romancelandia, where Dear Author Jane has come out as New Adult Author Jen Frederick.  My original blog post on the matter came fairly quickly on the heels of the announcement and was my way to start wrapping my own mind around how I really felt - and as can be shown in the comments I eventually fell on the side of having very strong feelings on the subject.

Other discussions have naturally cropped up and I'm starting to see comments along the lines of "Dear People Not Thrilled By This, what do you expect Jane to do?  Shut down Dear Author?  Step away from it?  What do you think b*tching is going to do?  Get over yourself."

OK, paraphrasing wildly - but that's the gist.  Here's my answer.

Nothing.  I expect Jane to do nothing.  She's going to make the decision she feels is best for her, her writing career and blog.  And believe you me, I don't think she's going to be swayed by the fact that I feel the way I feel or someone else feels the way they feel.  Here's what I think should happen and will.

We'll all make our own choices.  If you loved DA before and still do - then nothing will change.  If you hated DA before and still do - then nothing will change.  If you were a casual DA visitor and depending on how you feel now - then you'll act accordingly.  I know how I will interact with DA from this moment forward and like how all things should be in life, that's my choice and bully for me.  You have choices and free will and bully for you.

What I am sorry for and continue to be sorry for are several things: 1) that people are hurt. Whether you think they have a "right" to be hurt or not is incidental.  They're hurt and that sucks.  2) Gah,  the tin-foil-hat-wearing DA-haters are in full froth and they make me so very tired.  Hence why I haven't waded too deeply into certain comment threads and 3) that some people were put in an impossible situation of knowing but couldn't truly say anything because Jane is their friend and it wasn't their secret to tell.  I get that.  And honestly?  It adds another layer to this for me - a layer that tastes rather bitter if I'm totally honest.

So yes, we'll all move on - but I'm sad.  I'm not sorry that I feel this way.  But after 12 years of blogging and over 15 years of being part of the online romance community, the past year has been the most trying time for me, personally.  I used to never think about packing up my cookies and going home, but beginning with the Katherine Hale stalking incident, coupled with the Ellora's Cave suit, and now this?  It's hard to not have those feelings now, on occasion.

But then I think about how much I like talking about books, and the friends I've made, and things like the TBR Challenge and I buck up a bit.  Yes, the wind has been getting knocked out of my sails with more frequency of late, but there's one thing you learn after 12 years of endless blathering: this too shall pass even as things begin to change.  I feel strongly about this blog, my "brand" (such as it is), and how I've carried myself with readers, industry folks and authors over the years.  I think the content of this blog stands on it's own merit (again, such as that is) and that my reviews and commentary speak for themselves.

No, I'm not leaving.  I'm here.  My wee lone voice in the wilderness, ironing my cape and polishing my tiara.  Nothing stays the same.  Things change.  And as we learned this week: change is hard.

More Unusual Historicals & Two First Looks

I'm finding my wee lil' corner of the Interwebs a trying place to be at the moment because of....well, all the "stuff" going on and the fact that I have felt genuinely blindsided by all of it.  Plus, I'll be frank - there's stuff going on in Real Life right now.  Yes, residents of The Bat Cave are fine.  It's just "family stuff" - sick relations, dying relations, relations getting "old" in general - nothing that everybody else doesn't deal with in their day-to-day lives.  Needless to say though it's left me feeling tired, drained and my will to read has left the room.  And I really, really need to read since I know getting lost in a good book is exactly what I need.

I know....whine, whine, whine.  Please pass the cheese.

In the meantime, I've had several posts go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers that I have failed to blog about.  First up is a round-up of unusual historicals for October.  For the record, six of the featured titles are in my TBR.  I might have a problem, ahem.

I also did two First Looks: Tempted by a Cowboy by Sarah M. Anderson and Snow Angel Cove by RaeAnne Thayne. 

The Anderson is the second book in a series featuring an American brewing dynasty and it's good folks.  As in, really, really good.  It didn't pass my "must reread someday" test so not an A, but it's a high B+. Oh, and since I read this before reading the first book in the series?  I can attest that it stands alone just peachy.

The Thayne is a small town contemporary Christmas story that starts a new series, but is loosely connected to a previous series.  If the thought of reading yet another small town contemporary makes you want to drive nails up your arms - well, this one probably isn't going to change your mind.  But if you can't get enough of small towns?  If you're looking for a warm and fuzzy, cozy Christmas read?  This one may be worth checking out.  It was the very definition of an "OK" read for me.  Didn't love it, didn't hate it, but would easily recommend it to readers who lean that way.

More Unusual Historicals!

My latest round-up of Unusual Historicals has gone live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  September offers an ecclectic mix - everything from an Italian dance instructor falling for a housekeeper to a jazz club in 1920s Harlem.

Check 'em out!

A Call For Swag Plus H&H

Because my summer wasn't busy enough, I've decided to pack my calender this fall as well.  I've got several library programs coming up, including one on October 11 at a small branch for my former employer.

The topic du jour will be new and upcoming romance releases, plus what is hot and trendy at the moment.  I thought it might be fun to offer up some swag for attendees.  So romance authors - if you have swag you'd like to unload (and if you have a recent or fall release, even better!) please e-mail me if you're interested in sending me some goodies.  Again, the program is October 11, and the last time I did a program at this location about a dozen folks showed up.  So really, I wouldn't need a ton of stuff.  Well, except for maybe bookmarks.  I'm sure the library would love any leftover bookmarks.

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In other news, I've had two posts go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  First, my monthly round-up of unusual historicals - which Holy Hannah, Samhain decided to publish several westerns this past month.  Huzzah!

And speaking of westerns - I've got a First Look of the latest Rosanne Bittner offering, Desperate Hearts.  This isn't a traditional review, per se - more like an extended glimpse of what the story is about.  For me, personally, it wasn't one of Bittner's finer offerings.  It was one of those City Gal Heads To Middle Of Nowhere And Has No Clue What She's Gotten Herself Into stories - and honestly, I'm just not a fan of those.  I read westerns to get away from heroines like that, so this read like an extended Rescue Fantasy to me and.....meh.  But if you like that sort of plot - then certainly worth a look.  In the meantime, I'm looking forward to next summer when Sourcebooks will be reprinting one of Bittner's Old School meaty sagas, Outlaw Hearts.

Read-A-Romance Month

I'm over at Read-A-Romance Month today for Blogger Day talking all about why I think we should celebrate romance.  In a nutshell?  Romances are books where women have value, and how awesome is that?  Way awesome!

Also, as part of my blog post, I'm giving away a box of goodies (sorry folks, US only) of books and swag from the recent RWA conference in San Antonio, Texas. Seriously, you totally want to win this box of goodies.  Just sayin'.

H&H, RWA and Book Orgy

My latest round-up of Unusual Historicals has posted over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  These are all July releases, and the inaugural list featuring a new format (Megan wanted to me to add some footnotes after the blurbs - and I think it turned out nice!).

A couple of notes: I mistakenly omitted Trapped at the Altar by Jane Feather because the nondescript cover and back cover blurb gave me NO indication that it was set during the Restoration.  Also, The Mistress of Normandy by Susan Wiggs is a reprint with a new title folks.  I know, I was devastated too.  I really was hoping she had churned out a new historical.  But The Lily and the Leopard has been out of print for eons, so if you don't have it this is a good chance to score it now (plus digital edition! yippee!).

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So RWA is next week and I feel like I've done nothing to get ready for it.  Somehow my dance card filled up rather alarmingly this year.  This might turn out to be the busiest RWA for me since 2011, which was Librarian of the Year year (which was borderline insanity).  If you'd like to find me next week, here are a few places I'll be:

• Librarians Day on Wednesday, July 23.  I'm actually not speaking this year, so I'll be in the audience chillin'.  

• The hotel bar probably every free moment, but especially after the Literacy Signing.  No formal Blogger Bash this year since I'm thinking there isn't a need for one.  I mean, hello?  We're always in the bar anyway, right?

And.....

Saturday, July 26th 2:00PM-3:00PM
Picture Them in Their Underwear: Expanding Your Audience with Speaking Engagements
Speakers: Sarah M. Anderson, Me!, and Melissa Jolly

Expand your career and build your audience by adding “speaker” to your resume. Join an award-winning author, the 2011 RWA Librarian of the Year, and an assistant to several best-selling authors to learn how to find your audience, craft a pitch, book and schedule an engagement, promote your event and, most importantly, become a more confident speaker.

Take pity on us folks and come to our panel.  Yes, I know it's the afternoon before the RITA ceremony, but you do not want to miss our giveaways, awesome Powerpoint (visual aids!) and I'm pretty confident that the information we'll impart to the audience will change their lives.  Change. Your. Lives.  Seriously.  How could it not?

I'm also making the party circuit Friday evening (glad they're all kind of in the same general area), so I'll be floating around hopefully not wearing shoes that will leave me hobbled before my workshop on Saturday.

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In reading update news: I've been on a frenzy lately but I'm still behind because I overextended myself on review books considerably.  They're all books I'm happy to read and review since they sounded interesting to me, it's just this pesky problem of having to work for a living.  Darn it!  Authors who sent me stuff: I promise, I'm working on them.  Truly.

I probably should stop blogging and start reading huh?  Yeah.

Various Ramblings At H&H

I've been really lax in "promoting" my H&H posts here at the blog and I've had three go up in recent memory.

I've had two First Looks go live, both historicals.  There's Deeanne Gist's latest inspriational historical, Fair Play which features a Texas Ranger hero, a doctor heroine, and the backdrop of the Chicago World's Fair.  I loved the setting and history in this story, although at times the characters drove me a little nutty.  A solid B- read for me.

Next up is Always a Stranger by Amara Royce.  A well-drawn Victorian London setting, a spare hero thrust into the heir role, a Japanese heroine, and a bit of suspense.  I found the romance a little slow in spots, but the plot is compelling and the dialogue very solid.  Another solid B-.

And finally, a round-up of unusual historicals coming out in May.  Like a dolt, I forgot to include the Royce title (that's why Baby Jesus created comments though!).  A potentially very good month for westerns - which as we all know, Wendy loves her some westerns.

H&H: Unusual Historicals For April 2014

New month, new unusual historicals!  I've over at Heroes & Heartbreakers with a new shopping list.  Nice variety this month - including the 1920s, colonial Salem, Massachusetts and a bookseller hero who sounds kinda dreamy.

Head on over and check 'em out!

Hard and Soft Boiled

I've had a couple of book-related posts go live on other blogs over the last several days.  First up, a First Look over at Heroes & Heartbreakers of Karen Templeton's latest Harlequin Special Edition, More Than She Expected.  The second book in her new Jersey Boys series, like all good Templeton stories it starts out quietly but packs a big emotional punch.

And after you get your warm fuzzy romance fix?  Head on over to Criminal Element where I'm offering up a look at Loren D. Estleman's latest Amos Walker crime novel, Don't Look for Me.  A missing wife, an alternative medicine shop fronting a drug smuggling operation, the mafia, and a little bit of the porn industry thrown in for some flavor.