Romance Bandits

Where in the World is the Bandit Lair?

2011-10-14T00:01:00.002-04:00

The Golden Rooster crept cautiously up to the Lair's back door. Odd, how the lights were all off. The place was totally dark.

He tried the door. Locked. What? The lock was supposed to recognize his wingtip. Scowling as best he could with a beak instead of a mouth, he drew his lockpicks from beneath his cape. In a matter of moments, the door swung open.

There. He'd have a word with that smug gladiator, Demetrius, about this. That oughta snarl his sandal strings, making a mistake like locking the famous GR out of the Lair.

He pranced into the kitchen and flipped the light switch by the door. Nothing.

He flipped it again. Again, nothing. Good thing he had a flashlight. He turned it on and swept the kitchen. The place was almost too clean--no cookie jar or knife block on the counter. No bread box by the refrigerator. Come to think of it, the place was way too quiet. Sven and his crew were always bustling around trying to look important.

He crept to the stairs that led to Ermingarde's lair. No sound came up them. He sniffed and couldn't smell dragon.

Had some dastardly villain broken out of some bandita's book and slain them all? If only he'd been here to help! He even would've saved the gladiators.

Maybe.

Was his property intact? His stash of Tim Tams?

He rushed into his suite off the parlor. The lights here didn't work either. His flashlight beam swept over an empty room. Empty?!

No, not quite. On the floor by the door lay a note:

Bird--The Lair has moved to larger and nicer accommodations. When you can stop gallivanting long enough to check it out, you can thank us for moving your things.

Sven

PS--You can find us all here, at www.romancebandits.com, where the banditas are kicking off Trick or Treat with many, many fabulous prizes between now and October 31, when we give away the best prizes of all during when Duchesse's biggest Halloween Bash ever.

The Golden Rooster glared at the paper. So that was the big secret, a new Lair and a party. He'd better hurry over there, or the whole thing would fall flat without his dashing presence!

We hope you'll hurry over, too, and join the fun! Because we really, truly are outta here. This is our last Blogger post. Please come join the party at www.romancebandits.com!

I'm So Excited!!

2011-10-13T00:09:00.002-04:00

By Kate

Since we Romance Bandits are on the verge of making our BIG ANNOUNCEMENT (it happens TOMORROW! Be sure to be here!), I’m leading off with that news:

We're kicking off Trick or Treat in the Lair with a BIG announcement tomorrow, October 14! We’ll be giving away Tricks and Treats every day, leading up to a special fun (BIG!) TREAT on Halloween. Everyone's getting excited! The Cabana Boys are concocting fabulous drinks for everyone, Sven is exercising his magic massage fingers, Ermingarde the Dragon is blowing smoke (he does that when he’s confused), and that wily Golden Rooster is up in arms—er, wings—because nobody tells him nothing!

But all will be revealed TOMORROW! Don’t miss out on all the BIG FUN in the LAIR!

Okay, I got that out of the way. Now back to your regularly scheduled news of the day. Believe me, I had something extremely serious and pithy to talk about today, but since I’m over-the-top excited about tomorrow’s announcement, I'm struggling to remember what that serious topic was. Darn. I'm sorry, but I don't think I can get pithy with you.

That being the case, I’ll simply have to amuse and entertain you with some blatant self-promotion. Wheee!!

I have a new cover to show you! It’s my December Desire, AN INNOCENT IN PARADISE. Isn’t it beautiful? And the story is so much fun. Here’s a little preview:

She knows everything … but desire

Grace Farrell is a genius scientist first, a woman a distant second—until she meets Logan Sutherland. The self-made millionaire is wickedly sexy, and with him, Grace learns a new lesson—how it feels to want a man.

Logan has his roving eye on Grace from the moment she steps on his tropical island. But when he discovers she’s there under false pretenses, he orders her to leave. Faced with her refusal, the cynical bachelor works it all to his advantage. He’ll let her stay—in his bed! But will one night be enough?

I hope you’re intrigued! And there’s even more intrigue to come. My Harlequin Desire pal, Maureen Child, also has a tropical island Desire coming out in December, so the two of us are getting together to give away a fabulous Christmas in the Tropics goodie bag stuffed with tons of cool prizes. We'll get the contest started next month and you won’t want to miss it!

Whew, blatant self-promotion is exhausting! :-)

So … let's talk! Even though it’s warm and sunny in my neck of the woods today, I can still detect a hint of Autumn in the air. I love this time of year, with the changes in the light at the end of the day and all the spicy new scents wafting in the breeze. That's my favorite part about the changing of the seasons.

Oh, who am I kidding? I want fall fashions! That’s what I really love about Autumn. Clothes! I want to go shopping for cozy new sweaters and wooly plaid scarves to wear.

What about you? What’s your favorite aspect of Autumn? What makes you happy this time of year? Tell me all about it! I'm giving away two Harlequin Desires to a random commenter today - one from my Duke Brothers trilogy and one from Maureen Child's popular Kings of California series!

P.S. Did I mention that TOMORROW in the Lair we make our BIG announcement? See you here!

Welcome BARBARA VEY!!!!

2011-10-12T00:30:00.004-04:00

By Jeanne Adams and Cassondra Murray

ROOSTER CROW!!! DRUM ROLL!!!! TRUMPET FANFARE!!! DRAGON ROAR!!!

Please welcome, the one, the only
BARBARA VEY!!!!!!!

Cassondra: Jeanne, you're going to scare her off.

Jeanne: Barbara? No way. That woman has nerves of steel. She took on Publisher's Weekly, after all. And has now become the personality behind one of the top reviewer sites on the 'net. Barbara's Beyond Her Book Blog is the "go to" spot for information about the top books in Romance today. She's always got positive reviews. She's always going to a conference or event and sending back pictures and live streaming video and interviews to keep everyone "in the know" about the latest in romance, in books, and in what's up in our industry.

Cassondra: Yes, Barbara ROCKS. However, didja really think we needed a trumpet fanfare?

Jeanne, looking abashed: Well, maybe that was overkill. But I do so love a good trumpet volley. Figured if I was going to dust off the trumpets, and trumpeteers, then we might as well have a good blaring welcome blast, don't you know.

Cassondra shakes her head and turns to our guest: WELCOME to the Lair, Barbara! Jeanne and I have met up with you all over the country, at RWA events, Thriller events and more, but this is the first time the two of us, together as a team, have had you join us in the Lair. We're so glad you could make it.

Barbara: Thanks, Cassondra and Jeanne. And thank you to all Romance Bandits and friends.

Cassondra: So how did you get started doing what you do, Barbara?

Barbara, laughing: That's the very first question I always get asked is, “How did you get this amazing job?” I guess the easiest answer is by being an avid reader. Because I was reading a book a day (at that time) I kept noticing an ad at the back of the books called “Get Caught Reading at Sea.” Turns out there was going to be an author/reader cruise with about 30 authors and all I could think was that I would be on a ship for seven days with authors who had no where else to go.

Jeanne: Oh, noeeesss! No escape! Haha! Actually, I'm teasing. As an author, I think that would be fabulous to be on a ship with dozens, if not hundreds of avid readers. Not only would I get my extrovert fix, but I'd get to enjoy being both a writer and a reader too! I take it you went on the cruise?

Barbara: Oh, yes! I made my reservation and immediately started reading a book by every author. Then I emailed the author to say I enjoyed their book and looked forward to meeting them on the cruise.

Cassondra: That was courteous. And how like you, Barbara.

Barbara: Thank you! Once on the ship, I got to meet every author and one morning, while breakfasting with Marjorie Liu, I saw a woman all alone and asked her to join us. She turned out to be Karen Holt, Deputy Editor of Publishers Weekly.

Now, being a reader, I thought Publishers Weekly was a publisher, so I told Karen to sit down and I would tell her everything that was wrong with publishing from a readers point of view.

Jeanne: Good heavens! That's awesome! What did she do?

Barbara: Well, she took notes and wrote a story about me in Publishers Weekly that included my picture. A few months later, Karen contacted me and said PW was starting an online magazine and thought I would be perfect to write a blog from a readers point of view. I declined and told her to send books instead.

Cassondra: More books to feed the habit, right? But if you declined....

Barbara: Exactly, I loved the books. As to the blog, thankfully, Karen kept calling and after my son showed me a blog and explained that I should write it like I was talking to a friend, I accepted for a 3 month trial. Well, it’s been over 4 years and I’m still at it.

Jeanne: OMGosh, I had forgotten that you didn't, at the time, even know what a blog WAS, much less how to write one. You're such a natural at it, it doesn't seem possible. But you absolutely write it as if you are talking to a friend - me! - and that warmth and fun come through in every posting of Beyond Her Book.

Barbara: Thank you, Jeanne. It was an experience! I’ve learned many things along the way. Remember, being a reader I had no clue to how publishing worked. I now know so much more! Here are some key things I learned that I think most people don't know:

There's a difference between an editor and an agent.

An author doesn’t pick their own cover.

There are many imprints under one giant publisher.

An author isn’t necessarily responsible for all the editing mistakes in a book.

Publishers have certain criteria that writers have to follow. (I just thought they could write whatever they wanted.)

Writers actually have to work hard at writing a book. (I thought they sat around in sweats eating junk food and the stories just magically came to them.)

There’s a lot more to publishing a book than any reader ever wanted to know.

Cassondra: Amen to that, Barbara! The sheer number of steps in the process boggles the mind. What else has happened for you since you became the woman behind Beyond Her Book?

Barbara: I’ve been blessed to meet my favorite authors and discover many new ones in all my travels and traveling is one of my favorite parts of what I do. I get to go all over the United States and talk to amazing people and then write about it. How cool is that?

Jeanne: Have to say, that is TOTALLY cool! What's been the most exciting thing you've done so far?

Barbara: My first Comic Con in San Diego was overwhelming, but when I was invited to interview some movie and tv stars, I thought I was dreaming. I went to press junkets where you sit in a room and the stars and director of a movie come in and go table to table to talk to the press and all of a sudden I found myself one of the press.

Not knowing the rules, I asked for pictures and hugs from Dakota Fanning, Chris Evans, Richard Dean Anderson (and the rest of the cast of Stargate), Joss Whedon, Stan Lee, the entire casts of Burn Notice, Fringe, White Collar and Psych. I had lunch with Stephen Collins at the Hard Rock Cafe and talked about 7th Heaven and First Wives Club.

I met Bruce Campbell and had my picture taken. My son posted it on Facebook and declared me the “coolest mom ever.”

Cassondra: This is amazing, Barbara! I'd agree with your son. And kudos to him for helping you find the confidence to take that first step to blog, and big kudos to him for recognizing that his mom is an outstanding part of our Reader/Writer world!

Jeanne: Well said, Cassondra! So, what's coming up for you next, Barbara?

Barbara: I'm very excited to tell you about that. Next year I’ll be hosting my first Barbara Vey Reader Appreciation Luncheon in the Milwaukee area. This has been a dream of mine for years. Thirty-eight authors have agreed to come in to meet, greet, eat with and sign books for almost 300 readers. This is a real coup for the midwest.

I don’t know what else is in store for me, but I look forward to each new adventure.

Jeanne and Cassondra: Barbara, thank you SO much for being with us today!

So Banditas and Bandita Buddies, have you ever done something wild and crazy, like jump into a new career? What was that like for you?

Barbara has an outstanding blog in Beyond Her Book, what questions do you have for her about the blog and how she got started?

Would you have had the courage to hug Joss Whedon? What about the guy from Burn Notice? Grins.

As a reader, which authors would you love to sit down to lunch with, like at Barbara's upcoming luncheon, and chat about books?

SPECIAL NOTE......
Don't forget to check back for a big announcement on October 14 as we kick off Trick or Treat. The best treat of all will be awarded during the Duchesse's Halloween party on October 31. If you're not in the know after the 14th, you might miss the treat.

Perfect Present Winner!

2011-10-11T23:02:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone for a great day of blogging yesterday. The winner of their choice from my backlist is:

ELI!!

Congratulations, Eli! Please email me on anna @ annacampbell.info (no spaces) with your choice from my backlist (if you prefer something in Turkish, I have MY RECKLESS SURRENDER, UNTOUCHED and CAPTIVE OF SIN in translation) and your snail mail details.

Winner of Trinity Faegan's book

2011-10-11T22:30:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to Sheree! You are the winner of Trinity Faegan's The Memphisto Covenant. Please e-mail me at trishmilburn AT yahoo DOT com with your mailing information, and I'll forward it to Trinity.

Filling the Well

2011-10-11T00:01:00.000-04:00

by Christina Brooke/Christine Wells

I haven't been around the lair for a while and boy, have I missed you all! Especially the cabana boys and my dahling Sven of the Magical Hands. This latest deadline really whipped my hide and I had to retreat from the cyber world for a while to focus.

Writers often talk about the creative well--that there's a finite amount of creativity any of us have at one stretch. Once we've drained the well dry, we need to refill it by experiencing the world beyond our writing spaces and more specifically, other forms of artistic endeavour. I find amazing joy and inspiration in the product of other people's creativity.

At the moment, this is how I'm refilling my well:

The Russian ballet: I am not a ballet afficionado but I was transfixed by the beauty and athleticism of the dancers. And while I'm being highbrow about it, I'm also going to a performance of the opera Tosca this weekend, a birthday present from Husband. The piercing beauty of human voices gets me every time.

Interior Design: I'm in the process of renovating my house so I find a lot of inspiration in magazines and especially in blogs on the internet. I can spend hours at a time lost in Anna Spiro's Absolutely Beautiful Things, Ella and Baba and Driftwood Interiors. There's something very energizing about design and visual art, particularly when the designers use colour, textures and shapes in interesting ways.

My 4 year old son's art. Yes, I know, I am utterly biased but I find this talent truly extraordinary, not least because no one else in the family has the smallest amount of skill in this area. Regardless of talent, it's his obsessive passion for drawing that really enchants me. I hope he never loses it.

Cooking: With spring in the air, I'm trying to build up a repertoire of healthy, tasty recipes full of summer goodness. Baking is my weakness and my recreation. I love to do it but unfortunately I also love to eat what I bake!

Children's books: My agent sent me a set of Ursula Vernon's Dragonbreath books and I'm having a ball reading them to my sons. The vocabulary is quite advanced and yet the stories are so gripping, my 4 year old begs to go to bed early just so we can read the next chapter. I'm in awe of writers who can capture children's interest so thoroughly.

Fiction: You know I'm busy when I say I haven't had time to sit down and read! For me, that's pretty much unheard of. Luckily there is a solution--audiobooks! I am currently glomming Lisa Gardner. Man, the books are even scarier when they're read to you. I have also learned from experience not to listen to them when I'm eating. I know Lisa would be glad to hear me say that and think it a job well done.

Classic movies: As inspiration for the next romance, what could be better than watching An Affair to Remember for the zillionth time or snuggling down to watch every possible version of Pride & Prejudice?

Music: Yes, I admit, I'm an 80s/90s tragic. I load up the iPod and go walking or listen in the car and let my mind wander.

How do you re-energize after a particularly gruelling or emotionally draining time?

Do you use creative pursuits as therapy? What's your favorite Lisa Gardner book?

The Perfect Present!

2011-10-10T00:02:00.008-04:00

by Anna Campbell

I LOVE getting presents!

Yeah, I guess that makes me really unusual.

But I also love buying people presents. I love matching up the perfect gift with the right person.

Recently I was in Brisbane, which counts as the big smoke for me now I've moved to the Sunshine Coast, and I had a stack of birthday presents to buy. I was happy as a pig in mud. And even if I do say so myself, I think I picked up some beautiful, completely apt gifts for my friends.

Friends, even if you don't agree, don't tell me!

As many of you know, this year also marked a significant birthday for me (oh, thirty is such a lovely age, snork!). I collected a swag of lovely presents including some beautiful bouquets. Actually for me, flowers are a perfect present. I always love them.

One of my absolute favorites is the subject of today's blog. Recently I had wonderful Bandita Anna Sugden and her delightful husband to stay at my place in Australia. I've had a Bandita drought this year because I didn't make it to America for RWA Nationals so it was such a thrill to host our English Bandita and feed her to the koalas at Australia Zoo (Steve Irwin's place) which isn't far away.

By the way, no koalas were harmed in the devouring of my English visitors!

Actually, given koalas are herbivores, no English visitors were harmed either. I only put that in for a bit of dramatic tension. And speaking of dramatic tension, how shocking is this picture of Anna and me fighting off a vicious, blood-sucking kangaroo in the jungles of south-east Queensland? Scary, huh? I bet you have nightmares tonight!

Anna and Keith arrived bearing gifts, including one of the loveliest presents I've ever received. It's a commemorative teacup from Queen Victoria's 60th jubilee in 1897 - hey, how cool they did royal souvenirs back then! For a history geek like me, they couldn't have come up with anything nicer!

The teacup is really pretty - transfer printed with the British coat of arms of the lion and the unicorn and lovely roses, thistles and clover to symbolize England, Scotland and Ireland as the United Kingdom. Isn't it lovely?

Something that blows my mind is that this fragile piece of china is 114 years old and it's in perfect condition. I suspect it's been sitting in someone's granny's china cabinet as a treasured object since it was made.

Right now it lives in my bedroom and it never fails to make me smile. Think of how the world has changed since 1897 and yet this little piece of beauty is as fresh as the day it was made. That's one of the reasons I love old things - they give you such a window on the past.

Thank you, Anna Bandita and her lovely husband. You couldn't have come up with a better present! I hope you realized when you gave it to me quite how much I adored the cup and saucer.

So when was the last time someone gave you the perfect present? Or you gave someone else the perfect present?

Seeing we're in a gift-giving mood, I'm awarding one lucky commenter their choice from my backlist today. If you need help choosing a book, check out the books page on my website: http://annacampbell.info/books.html Good luck!

*********************

Don't forget we're kicking off Trick or Treat in the Lair with a BIG announcement on October 14, with a special treat to follow on Halloween. The Golden Rooster is poking into the corners to find out what's going on. He even asked Ermingarde the Dragon what was coming(from a safe distance, of course). But Ermingarde doesn't know, either.

Trinity Faegan Enters the YA World with Edgy Debut

2011-10-09T00:01:00.005-04:00

I'm thrilled to host debut Young Adult author Trinity Faegan today, not only because I had the privilege of reading her YA work while it was still in manuscript form but also because she's a dear friend.

Your first YA novel, The Mephisto Covenant, just released. Tell us a bit about the book and the main characters.

A descendant of the daughter of Eve, born before Original Sin, Sasha falls in love with Jax, a son of the dark angel, Mephistopheles, then discovers she alone can save him from Hell, but only if she gives up mortality and her birthright of certain Heaven to join him and his brothers in a brutal war to save mankind’s free will.

How did the idea for this book, and the rest of the series, come to you?

I was going through a difficult period after someone close to me was sexually assaulted. I sort of obsessed about evil – why does it exist? Is there really a devil, or Hell? One night, I dreamed of kick-ass guys who could destroy evil. It was hazy and weird, like all dreams, but when I woke up, they were fully formed in my head. As I created the story, I wanted a girl who could be with them only because she was unique in some way. I came full circle to where I’d begun, thinking about original sin. According to the Bible, original sin began when Eve ate the apple and tempted Adam to eat it, too. It’s like they doomed each of us to constant temptation, and only by rising above it can we reach Heaven. At least, that’s what so many religious doctrines teach. I imagined what a human would be like if they weren’t around when Lucifer visited Eden and offered the apple to Eve. So I invented Aurora, born before the fall, who wandered away and was lost. It kind of went from there.

Did you have any moments during the writing of the book when you went, "This is freaking awesome!"? Any when you wanted to pull your hair out?

Writing the first draft was awesome. Revising based on feedback from agents was not so awesome. Throwing the whole thing out and starting over was back to awesome. No, really. Revisions from my editor were…difficult. I’m not sure if that’s because of what he wanted, or that I was going through a major health crisis and surgery during first and second round revisions.

You previously wrote for Harlequin's Bombshell line before it closed. How is writing YA different from writing those earlier books? How is it similar?

I wrote the Bombshell books in first person, and they were funny. The heroine was a divorced down-on-her luck CPA. Her entire worldview was more mature and jaded than Sasha in Mephisto, which I wrote in third. The Pink books were light, even though they dealt with a serious subject, but Mephisto is very dark. I was more conscious of my audience with Mephisto, although I didn’t pull any punches.

Are you a big fan of reading YA? If so, what are some of the best YA books you've read this year?

Huge fan of YA. I haven’t read much since June, when I got serious with writing book 2 in this series. Before that, I read OyMG by Amy Dominy, about a Jewish girl at a Christian camp, and I loved it. As soon as life slows down, I’m excited to read Simone Elkeles’s third Fuentes brother book, Chain Reaction. I’m a total fangurl! Also really excited to read Heather Brewer’s first book in her new Slayer Chronicles series.

If The Mephisto Covenant was made into a movie, who would you love to see cast as the leads?
I never think about this. Really. Never.

Tell us about what you're working on now?

Getting some sleep after turning in book 2 of the Mephisto series, which right now is only two books. Here’s hoping there’ll be more!

If you could ask the Banditas and our Bandita Buddies one thing, what would it be?

How do you guys stay so fun, fresh and on top of things? And where can I buy some? LOL!
~~~
Trinity will be giving away a copy of The Mephisto Covenant today to one lucky commenter. Tell us, are you a fan of YA fiction? If so, what are some of the best YA books you've read this year? What are your all-time favorites?

Bandit Booty

2011-10-08T23:58:00.001-04:00

It's that time again! The winner of Theresa Romain's book, Season for Temptation is:

GayleC

Congratulations, Gayle! Please send me your address so I can forward it on to Theresa. Send it to: christie @ christiekelley . com

Juggling for Writers

2011-10-08T00:13:00.003-04:00

posted by Nancy

Barbara Monajem returns to chat with us about juggling two very different types of stories at the same time. Welcome, Barbara!

You're writing two very different kinds of stories at the moment, historicals for Harlequin Undone and the Bayou Gavotte paranormals for Dorchester. How do you stay in the right mindset for each?

People often ask me this question, and the answer is, I really don’t know. I just do it. When writing a contemporary paranormal, I’m in the modern world, thinking in present-day slang with a 21st century mindset. When I’m writing a Regency historical, I’m in an entirely different mental environment, with a different vocabulary and different values. It’s almost as if I flip a switch in my brain... and suddenly I’m someplace else.

The greatest difficulties have to do with the worlds themselves. In the contemporary novels, I have to think about stuff like which phone can I give my heroine that won’t be outdated in a year, while in the historicals, there’s a constant challenge to make my heroine appealing to modern women while keeping her believable in a historical context.

Tell us a bit about your current projects.

Right now I’m working on a full-length Regency for Harlequin. It’s the third in a series about the Carling siblings, James, Simon, and Sally. James’s story comes first in my recent novella, The Wanton Governess. The second novella is Simon’s story. I don’t have a title yet, but it’s scheduled to be released in January. Simon is a rake and was a hoot to write.

Recently, I handed the third Bayou Gavotte paranormal in to my editor. It’s about the rock star, Constantine Dufray, who was a secondary character in the first two novels. I’ve written his story several times over the years –- it was really the first I wrote about Bayou Gavotte, but his character deepened as I wrote the others -– and I’m quite jubilant that finally it’s finished! Also, I’ve just begun the fourth paranormal, a murder mystery. The heroine is a vampire, and the hero, Gill, is a secondary character from Tastes of Love & Evil. He’s possessed – but I still haven’t figured out by what! Hopefully that will be solved, as well as the murder, by the end of the book.

What's Pompeia and James's biggest problem in The Wanton Governess?

To grab their second chance at first love and run with it!! Here is a blurb that makes the problem clear:

In exchange for a few days’ shelter, dismissed governess Pompeia Grant pretends to be the wife of a man who spurned her years earlier. James Carling, the man in question, is in America, so he’ll never know. And it’s only for a couple of days. And she’s helping a friend, so she’s doing a good deed… But the next day, James comes home.

Would you like to share an excerpt?

Sure.

Sussex, 1801

"What in hell's name were you thinking?"

At this furious bellow all the ladies froze, then gaped. "Who was that?" Clarabelle faltered.

Pompeia rose in horror. She would know that enraged shout anywhere. She had heard it only once before, and she would never forget it.

But this time it was surely directed at her.

Footsteps hammered on the staircase, and her heart abandoned itself to terror. She had to run. She had to flee.

No! She had to do something.

"James, wait!" That was Sally's voice from the corridor. "Please, just let me --"

"James wasn't supposed to be home yet," Clarabelle moaned, and meanwhile the footsteps pounded down the passage.

Think, think! There must be some way to avert disaster. Not to Pompeia herself -- that was impossible -- but to Sally, to whom the vouchers for Almack's meant so much. But there wasn't time, because it would mean convincing Sir James to talk to her privately before exposing the deception. It would mean making him want to. Inexorably, the footsteps approached the drawing-room doorway.

I know how to make a man want to, said the Wanton Within.

Not that! Pompeia's rational mind screamed. Not now! But after a second's furious pause, she realized that for once the Wanton might be right. She got her feet moving and went straight for the door.

Too late.

He came into the room like a thunderstorm. It was James indeed, older, broader, and even more beautiful than four years ago, from his dark, wavy hair and grey eyes to his well-worn leathers. The Wanton Within applauded, but mostly, Pompeia cringed. She closed her eyes, desperate to compose herself. A babble of voices roiled around her, but she was poised only for his, for the fatal words exposing her as a fraud, commanding her to leave.

Open your eyes, said the Wanton. Look at him.

She did. He stared back, the anger slowly draining from his features, surprise taking its place.

That's a good start, the Wanton said. Now, let your eyes do the talking. But Pompeia had done that once before to Sir James -- accompanied by words that permitted no misunderstanding -- and received a stinging refusal.

That was then; this is now, the Wanton insisted. Smile, for pity's sake!

Pompeia felt her lips tremble into a travesty of a welcome.

Sir James's mouth quirked the tiniest bit in response. "Pompeia," he said.

She forced her tongue into motion. "J-James."

"Unbelievable." Slowly, he shook his head. "Oh, Pompeia." His eyes rested on her, warmly approving. No, wickedly so.

This was astonishingly different from the last time they'd met, when the chill in those eyes had made even the Wanton cower. No, particularly the Wanton, who had gone into hiding for quite a while after that.

What had happened to change things?

Ah. James did know of Pompeia's disgrace, just as she'd assumed. And, in the way of all men, he anticipated that she would willingly be just as disgraceful with him.

Yes! Do let's! Just this once! the Wanton said.

Wow, what a place to leave us hanging! Meanwhile, in your other subgenre, what's the issue between Rose and Jack?

Rose saves Jack’s life…but Jack loathes vampires. Forced to work together to rescue a runaway, they combine her allure and his talent for vanishing into thin air to tackle a vamp-gone-bad and unearth the secrets of the most dangerous club in Bayou Gavotte.

What's next for you?

When I finish the two books I’m working on now, I’ll probably write another historical novella just for fun, or maybe a full-length based on a secondary character in the one I’m writing now. I’ll decide when the time comes!

You write great blurbs on your website. How do you approach creating these short summaries?

With a lot of groaning and moaning and hopefully some help from my editors. :)

For more about Barbara and her books, visit her website.

Barbara is giving away one copy of Tastes of Love and Evil (paperback or Kindle e-book) and one copy of The Wanton Governess (Kindle e-book only).

So tell us about the last time you had to juggle projects. What were they, and how did you manage? Or tell us whether you read (or write) more than one subgenre at a time, and why.

And let us know, please, whether you're able to read Kindle books.

****

Don't forget we're kicking off Trick or Treat in the Lair on with a BIG announcement on October 14, with a special treat to follow on Halloween.

The Golden Rooster is poking into the corners to find out what's going on. He even asked Ermingarde the Dragon what was coming(from a safe distance, of course). But Ermingarde doesn't know, either.

All will be revealed on the 14th!

3 Easy Steps to Getting into the (Halloween) Holiday Spirit

2011-10-07T00:05:00.001-04:00

By Kate

I want to welcome my fabulous friend Regan Hastings to the Lair today! Regan is the dark alter ego of my equally fabulous friend Maureen Child. As Regan, she writes The Awakening, a series of sexy paranormal romances, in which a coven of reincarnated witches must atone for their actions 800 years ago, when their thirst for power led them to open the gates of Hell. VISIONS OF SKYFIRE, the second book of The Awakening is available now.

And now here’s Maur – I mean, Regan Hastings…

Christmas is taking over the calendar, and I resent it. Santa Claus must have a good press agent. Don’t get me wrong. I love Christmas. I just want it to stay in December, where it belongs. I’m okay with a slight encroachment into November. The Christmas season has my permission to begin the day after Thanksgiving.

But in my opinion, Halloween should have exclusive rights to October. Unless Santa is dressed in a zombie costume, I don’t want to see him.

Let’s band together and take the fat boy down! Let’s reclaim October. This month, the “holiday” in “holiday spirit” shall be Halloweeeeeeeeeeeen!

3 Easy Steps to Getting into the (Halloween) Holiday Spirit

1. Eat candy. Buy a huge bag of miniature candy bars in early October. Brand name candy bars, the ones that kids really like. You want those tiny goblins to tell their little friends to be sure to go to your house. Test one, just to be sure they’re okay, then put the bag in the freezer. Out of sight, out of mind. It won’t hurt if you sample one every now and then throughout the month, though, right? On Halloween, check your supply, realize that there are only two bite-sized candy bars remaining, and they’re unlikely to procreate. (Even if one does have nuts, and the other doesn’t.) Rush to the store to buy whatever meager pickings are available at the last minute, hoping desperately that they’re good enough to keep kids from toilet-papering your trees.

2. Decorate your yard. In October, you can always tell where the really cool people live by the number of tombstones in front of the house. Freak out your neighbors even more by putting their names on the tombstones. Add a zombie arm clawing its way out of the ground, and you’re Halloween gold, baby.

3. Read a book filled with witchy goodness. I was thrilled when I learned that VISIONS OF SKYFIRE would be released in October, because I knew that diving into the dark paranormal world of the Awakening would help put readers in the Halloween spirit. (Take that, Santa Claus!)

As VISIONS OF SKYFIRE begins, Teresa Santiago can feel that her powers are on the verge of Awakening. Since she was young, her abuela has told her that she’s destined to become one of the most powerful witches who has ever lived. If the Bureau of Witchcraft gets its way, she won’t live for long. In this modern day world, witches are hunted and killed. The instant her powers Awaken, the BOW will detect her magic… and they’ll come for her with every weapon in their arsenal.

Her only hope is that her Eternal warrior-protector will get to her first. Rune was forged from the sun to be her mate. With him by her side, she’ll find her piece of the artifact that will save an ungrateful humanity from the demons of Hell… or die trying.

Click here to read a free excerpt: VISIONS OF SKYFIRE

How do you get into the Halloween spirit? Do you decorate your house? Do you dress in costume? Do a lot of trick-or-treaters come to your house? What is your favorite kind of Halloween candy? If you’re from another country, how does your Halloween tradition differ from what we do in the U.S?

Kate here again! Another great thing about October? Well, I can't tell you. It's a secret. But it's good, and you'll love it, and... okay, I better stop now before I spill the beans. All will be revealed later this month!

The Accidental Courtesan in the Lair!

2011-10-06T00:14:00.001-04:00

Hosted by Donna MacMeans

Today we're welcoming the return of Cheryl Ann Smith to tell us about her new release, The Accidental Courtesan (Don't you love that cover?) Romantic Times gives a thumbs up to the book's "dash of humor, plenty of sensuality and a fast pace." Without further ado, here's Cheryl Ann -

Thanks so much to Romance Bandits and Donna for having me here! I had so much fun on my last visit that I’m thrilled to come back to talk about courtesans and to give away prizes!

Several years ago, I decided to write a book about a courtesan school. My heroine would rescue courtesans from that life and match them with suitors. In order to make the storyline realistic, I needed to find out if courtesans actually did marry. Thankfully, it was quite common, giving my story credibility.

Many of the women who became courtesans did so to escape poverty. Some turned to the profession to gain power, and some just enjoyed the notoriety it afforded them. Oddly, it appears that men did not find a woman’s scandalous past (or in some cases, present and future) as a mistress or courtesan a deterrent to marriage. Some husbands used their wives' extra-marital relationships with nobility to gain favor in court.

Jeanne Becu was the illegitimate daughter of a seamstress. She became a prostitute in her teens, though she had several professions, including milliner’s assistant. At the time, only titled women could be a royal mistress and she seemed to like the idea of becoming one. So, she married Comte Guillaume du Barry and was soon a mistress to Louis XV. Sadly, some years after Louis XV died, she was accused of treason the beheaded. France sure liked their guillotine!

Virginia Oldoini wasn’t born poor. She married at 17 and became the Countess of Castiglione. A cousin involved her in politics, where she met, and became the mistress of, Napoleon III. This (surprisingly) upset her husband and they separated. But she did not slip into obscurity. Instead, her beauty captured the attention of photographers, Mayer and Pierson. They documented her life in photographs, earning her a legacy that carried on long after her death.

Marie-Louis O’Murphy posed for a nude painting as a young teen. It came to the attention of Louis XV. She became one of his mistresses

and bore him a child. When she attempted to replace Madame de Pompadour as his favored mistress, she was booted from favor and married off. She went on to live an interesting life, including marrying and divorcing a second husband (the first died) who was twenty-eight years her junior.

Needless to say, the research into this topic was very interesting! Though my books have yet to feature an actual courtesan heroine, I wondered if readers would accept a fallen woman as a heroine, or would her past be too hard to overcome?

The Accidental Courtesan has been released this week (Oct 4th), the same week as my birthday (Oct 7^th), so I’m having a party!Berkley is giving away a two book set of my books to a Romance Bandits commenter today. Just give me your opinion of a fallen woman as a heroine.

Donna here - Speaking of prizes, I just wanted to remind everyone of the mad party of tricks and treats and prizes beginning on October 14th in the lair. Later this month a BIG Bandita Surprise will be announced with even more prizes, but you MUST be here on the 14th for details!

Cheryl's Birthday Bash continues on at her blog and she's giving the gifts! For details about a chance at a birthday kindle, visit www.cherylannsmith.com

A Clash of Exes

2011-10-05T00:31:00.001-04:00

Gina Robinson returns to the Lair with the debut of her new Agent Ex spy series. She'll also chat with us about what we think marriage to a spy would be like.

Welcome, Gina!

Like most writers, I read voraciously and broadly. I've always loved a good spy thriller, whether it be in novel or movie form. As for spy heroes--James Bond, Jason Bourne, Jack Ryan, Jack Bauer, James Clayton--they have a sexy mystique about them. They're handsome, athletic, intelligent, witty, good with a gun, great with their hands, alpha males. What's not to love?

Hmmmm . . . good question. The more I thought about it, the more I realized spies might make great lovers, but do they make great soul mates, partners, and husbands? There are a lot of potential downsides to marrying a spy. Spies are always gone. Always in danger, which can translate to putting those they love in harm's way, too. They're professional liars and they hang out with beautiful fellow female agents as well as femme fatale enemy spies. You never know where they are. They seldom make it home for dinner and when they do, they're often disheveled. They drive like maniacs. And they're always looking over their shoulder.

Thinking what it would be like being married to a spy like Bond sparked the idea for my new Agent Ex series from St. Martin's Press. But because I love Agent 86 Maxwell Smart as well as Bond, I put a lot of humor and lighthearted fun into the books, and poked a little bit of fun at the spy thriller genre.

And while most spy thrillers are written by men for men, I decided it was high time to gear a spy book toward female readers, which means focusing on the romance and the personal relationships of the spies and their love interests.

The books in the Agent Ex series are all reunion books. The "Ex" refers to spouses who are well on their way to being ex spouses. The first book in the series, The Spy Who Left Me, November 2011, takes place in Hawaii. Here's the back cover blurb:

THEY WERE UNDERCOVER LOVERS

If there’s one thing that can ruin a vacation, it’s running into your ex. Just ask Treflee Miller. If she’d only known that her husband Ty would be here in Hawaii—muscular, sun-bronzed, and infuriatingly gorgeous—she would have brought the divorce papers for him to sign. But life is full of surprises when you’re married to a world-class spy…

NOW THEY’RE STRANGERS IN PARADISE

Ty Miller can understand why his wife is tired of playing Mrs. James Bond. He’s never home, he’s always on a mission, and he’s usually surrounded by exotic informants. He has to admit that the perfect spy makes a pretty lousy husband. But for the sake of Ty’s security and Treflee’s safety, they can’t blow his cover. Not here. Not now. Not when his longing is so strong, her lips so tempting—and his enemies so close…

Excerpt:

There are two things a girl would really rather not experience on her Hawaiian vacation—the monthly curse and a run-in with her soon-to-be ex. For the first time since puberty, Treflee Miller had managed to dodge the first. She was staring at all six-foot-two well-muscled, lying, spying, ran-out-on-her inches of the second as he hefted her cousin Carrie’s bags up the steps of the Big Auau Sugar Plantation’s lanai.

He’d bleached his brown hair to a sun-streaked blond and grown a goatee, but it was him. The corner of his mouth curled into that sexy half grin of his and his eyes danced with flirtation as he stared at Carrie, not seeing Treflee.

Treflee flushed, feeling an unexpected jolt of jealousy. Whether she wanted him or not, he was still her man. Her mouth fell open into what was surely an unflattering gape. What was he doing here on her vacation? Shouldn’t he be playing spy boy, not bellhop, on something other than U.S. soil?

Damn! She didn’t have the divorce papers on her. Technically, he wasn’t legally her ex-husband. Yet. He’d run off on another top-secret mission without signing the final paperwork. If only she had them with her, she’d make short work of her still-married status.

***

Here's the trailer:

The Spy Who Left Me from Visual Quill on Vimeo.

For more information on Gina and her books, check out her website.

What about you? What do you think it would really be like being married to a world-class secret agent? What upsides and downsides can you imagine? One winner today will receive either Spy Games or Spy Candy (winner's choice) from Gina's backlist.

****

Don't forget we kick off Trick or Treat in the Lair with a BIG announcement on October 14. Be sure to join us on this special red letter day and learn the secret the GR is doing his best to uncover. Trick or Treat culminates on October 31 with a special treat--but you'll miss the beginning unless you're here on the 14th!

Welcome Theresa Romain

2011-10-04T00:12:00.000-04:00

by Christie Kelley

Today the lair is welcoming debut author Theresa Romain. Her first book, Season for Temptation, is out now. Welcome again, Theresa.

Can you tell us a little about the story?

Hi, Christie—thanks so much for inviting me here to blog with the Romance Bandits! Season for Temptation is a Regency-set historical romance featuring a love triangle, a hungry parrot, disastrous costumes, several unwanted proposals, and one much-wanted one.

The back cover copy reads:

TWO SISTERS… Julia Herington is overjoyed when her stepsister, Louisa, becomes engaged—to a viscount, no less. Louisa’s only hesitation is living a life under the ton’s critical gaze. But with his wry wit and unconventional ideas, Julia feels James is perfect for Louisa. She can only hope to find a man like him for herself. Exactly like him, in fact…

ONE CHOICE… As the new Viscount Matheson, James wished to marry quickly and secure his title. Kind, intelligent Louisa seemed a suitable bride… Until he met her stepsister. Julia is impetuous—and irresistible. Pledged to one sister, yet captivated by another, what is he to do? As Christmas and the whirl of the London season approach, James may be caught in a most scandalous conundrum, one that only true love, a bit of spiritous punch—and a twist of fate—will solve…

Season for Temptation is a Regency historical. What got you into writing historical romance?

I’ve always loved history, and I’ve always loved reading. I started reading historical romance in college, and I think the possibility of writing one was always in the back of my mind. First, though, I had to finish grad school (in history!), and then I focused on nonfiction writing for quite a while. Once I was ready to switch to fiction, it took a while to retrain my writing voice. The first draft of Season for Temptation sounded as formal as a scientific article! But it was even more fun than I’d thought it would be to make up stories and tinker with dialogue and character, so I kept revising over time. And, of course, reading every fantastic historical romance I could get my hands on.

The plot has a love triangle. How hard was writing that aspect of the story? Did you find it difficult to keep you hero and heroine sympathetic in that situation?

Absolutely, it was a difficult balance to keep everyone sympathetic. But I thought it was very important to the story. I’ve seen love triangles with “other women,” but I wanted to write all three characters as good people who are in a really difficult situation. Both James and Louisa enter into their engagement for noble reasons: they want to help their families. Both James and Julia fight their attraction because they have great respect for Louisa—in fact, Julia considers Louisa her closest friend as well as her stepsister. So I had to balance the growth of love and desire with perfectly proper behavior. Every time James or Julia stepped over the line, they had to pull back, since (in my opinion) there’s nothing romantic about betrayal. The story is about how people with the best intentions can be led astray by emotions—and then how they make things right.

We love call stories in the lair! Can you tell us yours?

Certainly! Mine is kind of backwards. My call story began with the Northwest Houston RWA’s Lone Star writing contest in spring 2009. I entered the first few chapters of my first novel in the Historical category. And then my house flooded – TWICE – and I forgot about the contest. I stopped querying, I stopped writing, I stopped doing anything except dealing with contractors and oh yeah working and oh maybe even sleeping but not much because there was always something else that needed to be fixed. That went on for about five months.

At the end of that five months, things were reasonably normal again, and I missed writing so much by then. I opened up my manuscript files and looked everything over. I had fresh eyes for the work by this point, and I started tweaking and fixing and clipping and expanding. A few weeks later, the Lone Star contest coordinator told me that I’d made the contest final. And shortly after that, the judging editor emailed me to ask for the full. Whee!! She had my shiny newly edited manuscript in her inbox before the day was out. A few weeks later, the editor called me to make an offer for it.

So that was the literal “call” in my “call story,” and I actually missed it because I was at work. But she left a message. I know I didn’t imagine it, because I made my husband listen to it and tell me it was real. And I did get back to the editor the next day, and she promised it was real. And now Season for Temptation is also real!

What's next for you?

I’m working on a few other Regency-set projects, including a follow-up to Season for Temptation. When I have definite details, I will shout them to the world! And just for fun...what's your favorite dessert? Um, all of them? I have a world-class sweet tooth, and dessert always sounds good to me. I like to watch competitions on the Food Network, and whenever a judge says, “This is too sweet,” I think, “Whatever. There’s no such thing.”

I do have a particular love for anything with coconut (which I realize is a controversial opinion). Coconut cake is my favorite make-it-every-birthday treat. I also really like Jelly Bellys, but I don’t get them very often since I gobble them down whenever they’re in the house.

You can Theresa at http://theresaromain.com/
http://www.facebook.com/AuthorTheresaRomain
http://twitter.com/TheresaRomain

Christie and Bandits, thanks again for hosting me! And now I have a question for you readers. Did you ever have a dinner that surprised you—whether the food or the company? Tell us about it! I’ll give away a copy of Season for Temptation to one random commenter.

Guest Linda O. Johnston asks: YES or NO?

2011-10-03T00:19:00.003-04:00

Hosted by Kate
Please join me in welcoming back Linda O. Johnston to the Lair! She's here to tell you all about her latest Pet Rescue mystery! Take it away, Linda!

Hi, Romance Bandits and fans. Thanks for inviting me here. Now, ready for a challenge?

Here it is: What do you do if you’re given two choices--yes or no? You must go one way or the other--and you have reasons you don’t like each of them. How do you make your decision?

The lesser of two evils? The one you’re most likely to succeed at?

I’ll tell you in a moment what I’ve done to Lauren Vancouver, the protagonist of my Pet Rescue Mystery series, by giving her that kind of decision in her latest adventure, THE MORE THE TERRIER.

First, though, I’m going to provide you with that decision. You can choose to read THE MORE THE TERRIER, or not. Guess which one I’m aiming for! Better yet, you can also choose to read its predecessor in the series, BEAGLEMANIA, if you haven’t already. If you choose yes, I’m betting you’ll have fun with them. And, by the way, THE MORE THE TERRIER is a Mystery Guild selection!

Now, let me tell you about Lauren. She’s a skilled and dedicated administrator of a private, no-kill pet shelter. She’ll do anything to save animals, and she despises those who harm them. Most of the time.

But in THE MORE THE TERRIER, Lauren is faced with a decision she doesn’t like at all: ignore her one-time cherished mentor, who is the major suspect in a murder case, or help her. Sounds easy, right? But that mentor has apparently become the kind of person Lauren hates most: one who abuses animals.

So what does she do?

Here’s the background:

At the beginning of THE MORE THE TERRIER, Lauren is horrified to learn that her former mentor, Mamie Spelling, has become an animal hoarder. Of course Lauren does all she can to save the animals. Every one of them comes out of it just fine. It’s fiction, after all. And in the Pet Rescue Mysteries, “no-kill” means pets, not people!

It doesn’t hurt that Lauren’s love interest, Matt Kingston, is a captain with Los Angeles Animal Services who can let her know when the abused animals that are taken into official custody are ready for private shelters to come and rescue them. Oh, yes, my mystery protagonists always have a love interest, just like my romances always come with suspense.

Anyway, a woman who has been hounding Mamie is soon murdered, and Mamie becomes the major suspect. But Mamie is aging and confused. Lauren lost touch with her after she, and not Mamie, was chosen to run HotRescues, a generously funded private pet shelter.

What do you think Lauren does? You undoubtedly guessed it. She helps Mamie. That means that Lauren once more must solve a murder. She’s already had to do that, in BEAGLEMANIA, when she was the main murder suspect.

The Pet Rescue Mysteries are a spinoff series from my Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mysteries, in which Kendra comes to think of herself as a murder magnet. Kendra makes cameo appearances in the Pet Rescue Mysteries, and the person who supports Lauren’s shelter HotRescues financially is Kendra’s wealthy guy friend Dante de Francisco.

That adds to Lauren’s dilemma, by the way. She likes Kendra well enough but she doesn’t want to be like her--especially in solving murders. Not that I’m giving her much choice. And the murder in THE MORE THE TERRIER isn’t the last one Lauren will need to solve!

The next Pet Rescue Mystery will be HOUNDS ABOUND, which will be published in 2012.

So--how do you make those yes or no decisions? And if your decision about THE MORE THE TERRIER is to read it, please let me know!

Kate here. I want to thank Linda for stopping by the Lair today! You can visit Linda at http://www.lindaojohnston.com/ and at http://www.killerhobbies.blogspot.com/ on Wednesdays. You can also friend her on Facebook.

P.S. Tricks and Treats begin on October 14 so be sure to stick around for the fun! And later this month, a BIG Bandita Surprise!! More Prizes will be involved! :-)

Mystery Under the Vines

2011-10-02T00:18:00.001-04:00

by Caren Crane

The scene: a quiet street in working-class neighborhood in the suburbs. A small elementary school sits on this street, where there is little traffic except on weekdays when school begins and ends. Across from the school, a wooded ravine, overgrown with ivy and vines winding over the ground, down the hillside and up the tree trunks.

Within the skeletal fingers of dead vines, buried in heavy mulch from years of fallen leaves, lay half-hidden, half-seen things. Things no one wanted, no one needed. Things that should remain hidden, things with stories unheard and untold.
People drove by every day. Parents picking up their children from the school across the road. Unsuspecting neighbors believing nothing more than trees and undergrowth dwelled in the woods in their midst.

What we discovered shocked us and the wondering neighbors who drove by - some several times - to see what was dragged up the hill from the overgrown depths. When my Girl Scout troop went yesterday to help with a local Litter Sweep, we had no idea what we would find. We had been told this spot needed "a lot of help", but were unprepared, first, for the overgrown state of the ravine and, second, for the sheer volume and disparity of objects we unearthed.

Many of these were not glamorous things: bottles (beer and liquor), cans (beer, soda and cat food), bags, cups, plates, wrappers, lids with straws. Some appeared to be in the ravine by mistake: a basketball, several soccer balls, the casings from roman candles. Some were clearly left for the sake of dumping convenience: a mattress, a space heater,a metal garbage can, a gas can, a futon pad, mini-blinds, a patio umbrella, a PC tower, a typewriter, a couple of car tires.

Still others made us wonder: a pair of pants, a nice pair of Nike tennis shoes, baby socks, adult socks, baby shoes. A crib. A meat cleaver. The sign pointing the way to a church in a nearby town. A pair of panties.

It wasn't just my writer's imagination that was piqued by all this "treasure". The girls in my troop – all high school juniors and seniors – crafted elaborate scenarios of how some things had come to be there. There were stories of young women making bad choices, trusting the wrong men. A young couple setting up a meth lab, trying to raise a baby they couldn't support and shouldn't have had. Until things went south and they had to ditch everything: the lab equipment, the burners, the futon, the crib. The wife. The cleaver. The baby.

By the time the girls got this far into the tale and we were deep in the ravine, we all fully expected to uncover skeletal human remains. It got very CSI down in there yesterday. Suddenly, our two and a half hours was up. There was more to be done, much more, but Starsky – our trusty town employee and clean-up supervisor – reclaimed our orange vests, gloves and trash picker-uppers.

Still, there is much more to be done in the ravine and there are many more stories for it to tell. The volunteer supervisor is sending us information on how to permanently adopt that spot, to come back on a regular basis and unearth more fascinating pieces of other peoples' lives. I feel sure we will. Who could resist all that buried drama waiting to be dragged from the vine-choked depths of the ravine? Not I.

What about you? Have you encountered a place that made your mind race with speculation? A house, an empty lot, an abandoned space, that compelled you to recreate how it came to be in its current state? We would love to hear about your mysterious spot and the story it told to you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Be sure to stop by later this month. Beginning on October 14, we will be giving away tricks and treats daily in anticipation of our BIG SURPRISE coming at the end of the month. Don't miss out!

OCTOBER PREVIEW

2011-10-01T00:01:00.042-04:00

by Jo Robertson

Isn't the photo to the right delicious! It's a perfect blend of fall and winter. I want to use it for one of my covers!

Fall is in the air in northern California! And BIG NEWS is in the air for the Romance Bandits...and the rooster seems to be in a tizzy, running around like a chicken with his head cut off!

October 14 kicks off a special Trick or Treat for our visitors, with the biggest treat of all coming in the Duchesse's post on Halloween! Stay tuned for the delightful details, and the kicking off of our trick or treat surprises with a very special announcement!

Bawhaaaaa! 'Tis also the month of ghosts and ghouls and goblins, and we have a great lineup of guests to keep you returning to the Lair where things go bump in the night. Especially on All Hallow's Eve!

On October 3, Kate will host Linda O Johnston, who's back in the Lair to talk about THE MORE THE TERRIER, the next book in her delightful Pet Rescue mystery series.

Christie brings Theresa Romain to the Lair on October 4.

Nancy's guest Gina Robinson visits on October 5 to talk about her new release, "The Spy Who Left Me." They will discuss what marriage to a spy like Bond might really be like. Oooh, now that sounds delicious!

Cheryl Ann Smith will be returning to the lair on October 6 as Donna's guest. About her latest Regency release, THE ACCIDENTAL COURTESAN, Romantic Times says, "With a dash of humor, plenty of sensuality and a fast pace, Smith's second School for Brides novel is a pure delight..."

Kate again plays hostess as she brings Regan Hastings back to the Lair on October 7. You won't want to miss this one because, as RT Book Review says, "the sexual tension ... sizzles off the page!"

On October 8 Nancy brings another guest. Barbara Monajem and she will chat about juggling historical and contemporary books. They'll also discuss Barbara's paranormal romance, Tastes of Love and Evil.

On October 9 Trinity Faegan

is T r ish's guest. They'll be talking about her debu t young adult novel, The Mephisto Covenant.

On October 12, Bandits Jeanne and Cassondra will host the venerable Barbara Vey for an intimate discussion about how she emerged from deep depression to become one of the most influential voices in publishing. Oh, an d she'll announce a fun upcoming surprise!

Deep breath to pause. That's a host of guests, folks, and tons of books to ad to our TBR piles. So let's pause on October 13 to wish Bandita Cassondra a very happy birthday!!!

Nancy returns again on October 16 to chat with guest Gerri Russell about the appeal of continuing series. We'll also find out a bit about Gerri's new novella, The Border Lord's Bride.

Lair favourite, Kate Walker, will be back on October 22 as Vrai Anna's guest to chat about her new and rather special title The Return of The Stranger (Presents Extra October ). She'll be talking about the way that the seeds of this book were set in her mind when she was eleven and have been growing there ever since. Verrrra interesting. I'm sure what was in my head at eleven wouldn't be worth writing about.

Joan hosts guest Kristan Higgins on October 25

On October 27, Cassondra and Nancy will bring debut author Debbie Kaufman to the lair as their guest for her first time on the "author" side of the chat.

Brenda Novak will return October 30 as Jo's guest to discuss her latest writing ventures!

And, of course, Halloween is always a terrifyingly lively event in the Lair, so be sure to be here on October 31!

Anna Campbell’s current contest is for your choice from her backlist. FIVE people who enter can select a book from CLAIMING THE COURTESAN, UNTOUCHED, TEMPT THE DEVIL, CAPTIVE OF SIN, MY RECKLESS SURRENDER or MIDNIGHT’S WILD PASSION. Just email Anna on anna @ annacampbell.info (no spaces) and tell her which book you’d like. Contest closes 31st October. For more information, please visit Anna’s contest page: http://annacampbell.infor/contest.html

Happy October, everyone!

.......

The debonair Golden Rooster sauntered into the Lair. A big development was in the works for the Romance Bandits, and he must be ready for it. He needed to refresh his traveling supplies, maybe pick up a couple of weapons to replace those, er, misplaced along the way.

The Bandita Buddies generally treated him well, but the Bandits themselves showed him no mercy. They actually thought he should work when he stayed with them! He was still recovering from his last encounter with that big, ugly beast Nancy called a dog.

At least no one should be around this time of day. Sven and his lackeys would be shopping, Ermingarde the dragon would be sleeping, and Demetrius would have his muscular gladiator louts sparring in the gym. This was the perfect time for pilfer--ah, replenishing--supplies.

The rooster strolled toward the kitchen. Ah, the aroma of brownies. Those would fit nicely in his pack.

"Yes, freeze them all." Sven's voice came from the kitchen. Drat. Well, the busybody major domo was bound to get distracted and go fuss with something soon, leaving the coast clear.

"We'll need them," Sven continued. "Duchesse says her Halloween party will be the biggest bash in the history of the Lair. Lars, if you've finished the chocolate chip cookies, you can start on the bourbon balls."

Sven and Lars? Double drat! The GR sidled to the door and peered inside. Sven, Lars, Paolo--and was that a new guy? Extra staff? No one had consulted him about that. With all those vigilant eyes around, he'd have no chance of stealing anything.

Well, perhaps to the armory now. He could come back when Sven's crew were busy elsewhere.

He hurried down the stairs and into the great vaulted corridor leading to the armory and the writing caves. He rounded the corner to the armory, only to find the door ajar.

The rumble of deep male voices drifted out of the door. Gladiators, here? They were supposed to be pounding each other at this time of day.

If he'd had a lip, the rooster would've curled it. Over-muscled, over-sexed, and over-rated, those gladiators were. There was simply no accounting for their popularity. Not that it rivaled his own, of course, not with women other than those bossy Banditas.

He crept to the door and peered inside. If he could grab a rapier, perhaps a Derringer, without being seen . . . But no. Not with all of them in there. He glared at the men counting sabers, broadswords, daggers, even the shortswords the gladiators normally wore.

"Each of you take a full set," Demetrius said. "Then we'll lock up the rest. This is going to be the biggest Halloween bash the Lair has ever seen. There'll be gate crashers. We'll need a tight security net."

"I guess we need to polish our armor, too?" Marcus asked. On receiving a nod, he added, "What's the big deal, anyway?"

Demetrius shrugged. "They're not saying, other than warning me there's a 'very special treat at the party.' And yes, those were Jeanne's exact words."

"Ours is not to reason why." Marcus grinned. "Ours is just to keep problems away. Including the Golden Rooster."

"There'll be no repetition of his annoying conduct at the Valentine ball," Lucien chimed in. "We'll be ready for anything, including him." He patted the net hanging at his side.

Vile thing! The GR remembered it too well from the Valentine's event. They thought they'd be ready? He snorted, as best he could without an actual nose. He'd show them ready.

But first he had to find out what was going on.

Will the Golden Rooster uncover the Lair's secret? Or will he learn it on October 14 along with everyone else? Check back

Stuff Happened

2011-09-30T00:36:00.000-04:00

posted by Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy

I'd planned to have this post be the Launch Party for my self-published novelette, The Sidhe Princess, but you know what they say about the best laid plans:

STUFF HAPPENS!

I'm sorry to say that STUFF did happen, and I missed my deadline. In this case some of the STUFF included a sojourn to the Big Easy and other destinations south of there across the Gulf of Mexico. But all along the way, Aunty had the Lair and it's inhabitants firmly in mind.

Aunty made several stops on her journey, the first being the Central American nation of Belize, where the DH and I investigated the Mayan ruins at Altun Ha.

Never fear, Aunty was assured by her guides Ed and Tracy that the world really is not going to end in December, 2012 as some claim. That's just as far as the Mayans bothered to calculate their calendar! Sounds like a perfectly reasonable explanation to me, considering the ruins at Altun Ha date back a couple of centuries BC. Aunty doesn't feel the need to calculate HER calendar nor even the Lair's for more than the next 23 centuries.

A bit further south, Aunty found herself on the island of Roatan, which belongs to the country of Honduras. This long, narrow island was once the stronghold of pirates, but Aunty didn't see any scalawags she recognized (Ho! Romance Writers Revengers, where were you?) However, this scurvy knave claimed to be kin to our Golden Rooster.

As you can see, Aunty severely questioned the validity of his claim!

Also on Roatan, Aunty's lovely taxi driver, Mario showed her around his hometown of Coxon Bay. He even stopped at the local grocery store and helped Aunty procure an ice cold Diet Pepsi, the perfect pick-me-up on a hot and humid day!

Aunty thinks it's high time we recruited a Honduran cabana boy for the Lair. What do you think?

Back on the ship, Aunty headed for her last port of call in Cozumel, Mexico. But not before she finally located her missing reading glasses in a most unusual place...

And got a great idea for a whole new kind of shape-shifter story!

Back in our home port of New Orleans, Aunty made a quick stop at Cafe Du Monde to sample beignets and pick up a few recipes for Sven. Somehow, I doubt he will serve beignets on a regular basis considering the trails of powdered sugar they leave behind, but perhaps on special occasions...

So now you know Aunty's excuses for missing her deadline and NOT having her novelette up for sale in September as expected. But I promise we will have a SUPER LAUNCH PARTY for Sidhe Princess very soon!

Meanwhile, what do you think:

Is that Pirate Parrot related to the GR?

Should we recruit Mario as the Lair's newest cabana boy?

And would you read a paranormal romance in which the hero or heroine shape-shifted into a manta ray?

Elegant Menace

2011-09-29T00:29:00.000-04:00

by Susan Sey

I was listening to NPR the other day. Yeah, I listen to NPR in the car. I'm geeky like that.

Anyway, they were discussing an independent film about the studio musicians of the 50s & 60s, & how there was this prevalent attitude among serious musicians of the time that rock & roll wasn't 'real' music. Many of the established studio musicians of the time simply refused to play it.

Enter the carpet baggers. The profiteers. The soulless capitalists who'll do anything for money.

Enter the hungry studio musician wannabes who said, "Hey, I'll play that." And they did.

One particular set of musicians, the Wrecking Crew, took that ball & ran with it, becoming the power players of the next two to three decades. They played behind everybody from the Beach Boys to Elvis, Sinatra to Sam Cooke.

Charlie Watts, the drummer from the Rolling Stones, was interviewed for this film, & was asked to list his his top ten all-time favorite rock drummers. He was startled to find that five of them were Hal Blaine of the Wrecking Crew.

I feel this way about Alan Rickman.

I sat down with a writer friend the other day & our conversation turned (as it tends to do) to villains we love. I started waxing eloquent about how Alan Rickman utterly saved the movie Robin Hood. How he dripped well-heeled danger in Die Hard. How he oozed disdain so gorgeously as Professor Snape.

I realized in that moment that when it comes to villains, I have a favorite flavor.

Elegant menace.

This is what I like. This makes me happy. I like my bad guys smart, slick, well-funded & exquisitely well-spoken. I like them cool & calculating. I like brains with a side dish of evil.

Who knew?

So what about you? When it comes to bad guys, do you have a favorite flavor? Tell us about the villains you love!

Double Bandit Booty!!

2011-09-28T23:44:00.002-04:00

Today I'm posting winners from two of the guests I've interviewed lately.

The winner of a signed copy of MAGICAL LOVER by Karilyn Bently is Sheree!! Congratulations Sheree!!

The winner of a signed copy of LIVER LET DIE by Liz Lipperman is hrdwrkdmom aka Dianna!! Congratulations Dianna!!

Please email me your snail mail addresses to swwelsh2001 AT Yahoo DOT com (yes there are 2 w's in that addy) and I'll see Karilyn and Liz get the information ASAP!

Winner of Kathleen Eagle's book

2011-09-28T22:04:00.000-04:00

The winner of the book from Kathleen Eagle is megganconnors. Please e-mail me at trishmilburn AT yahoo DOT com with the name of the book you'd like and your mailing information.

Surprise! Liz Lipperman's Debuting today!!

2011-09-28T00:22:00.040-04:00

interview with Suzanne

Suz: Romance Bandits, all of our Bandit Buddies and readers, I have a surprise guest for y'all. Today I'm chatting with my friend Liz Lipperman. Liz is one of the people who first made me feel welcome in my DARA (Dallas Area Romance Authors) chapter when I first moved to Dallas. Now I get to return the favor by hosting her for the release of her brand new debut, first-ever published book, LIVER LET DIE: A CLUELESS COOK MYSTERY available Oct 4th!

Liz, please pull up a barstool and we'll have the Lair's chief cabana boy, Paolo bring us a pitcher of Margaritas.

Liz: Yum! Margaritas are my favorite. No salt, please. And what's more fun than drinking it with you Suz, and the fabulous line-up of Romance Bandits and their readers? And I can only imagine what Paolo looks like! Thanks to all of you for inviting me here today.

Suz: So Liz, I love the story on how you came to write a cozy mystery series. Can you tell our readers what events led up to you writing LIVER LET DIE?

Liz: First of all, I didn't even know I was a mystery writer until my agent told me. Duh! I had been chasing the romance market for many, many years and never ever finaled in a contest. Guess my dead bodies and big explosions didn't go over with the romance judges.

Anyway, once I realized she was right, I wrote a paranormal mystery, the first in a proposed series. It's about a trash-talking ghost who helps her sisters solve her murder. My agent sent it to a new editor at Berkley Prime Crime who'd just moved from an inspirational publishing house. I thought it would be a resounding "no" since there is a lot of bad language, sex, and gruesome murder scenes.

Turns out you can never tell about people. Not only did she love the story, she read it twice and quoted some of my ghost's best lines. BUT (don't you hate those?) she couldn't buy it since she was acquiring cozies, and she'd have to cut out the best parts. She wanted to know if I could write a cozy, specifically a "foodie." That's when I rushed out to the bookstores and grabbed up a bunch of them to read.

What I found was that most of the foodie cozies were about gourmet food, and there was no way I could pull that one off. I am one of 9 children. We ate casseroles, and to this day, I hate fancy food. So, I said no, I couldn't write it. Fortunately, my agent knows me better than I do, because she said yes, I could and to sleep on it.

I woke up the next morning with this great plot in my head about a wannabe sports reporter who gets dumped in Dallas and ends up in a small town writing personals. When she is offered the culinary column temporarily for a woman who is out with a broken hip, she jumps on it, seeing it as a way to mover closer to her dream job. The problem is, she was raised with four brothers, and although she can throw a great touchdown pass, she can't cook a lick, surviving on fried bologna sandwiches, fast food and Hostess Ho Hos. Three chapters and a synopsis later, I had a three book deal.

Suz: I love that story! LIVER LET DIE is set in a small town in Texas. How did you get the small-town feel for the story? Is there one key element about small towns that you think plays into the way a cozy mystery fits into it?

Liz: You've hit on one of the big requirements for a cozy, Suz. They're all set in small towns with a protagonist who just happens to fall in the middle of a murder. There are usually no cops or private eyes solving the mystery. As for the small town, originally I wrote it with a specific town in Texas. However, I changed it later because a fictional town offered way more options-that and the fact that I called the cops Dumb and Dumber.

Here's an excerpt from LIVER LET DIE:

Jordan dropped her review on Dwayne Egan’s desk and stepped back to await her fate. She’d spent the entire morning researching foie gras on the Internet and had come away outraged and ready to make a stand on the issue.

That was before Egan grabbed the report and lowered his eyes to read, and all her bravado dissipated. Shifting nervously and second-guessing herself, she tapped out the melody of a rock song along the side of her slacks with her fingers.

Too late to change her mind as Egan motioned for her to sit.

She eased into the chair behind her, eyes fixed on the editor while he finished the first page and flipped to the second. Her nerves were like aliens ready to burst through her skin.

“You actually ate this?” he asked, finally glancing at her over the top of his silver-rimmed reading glasses.

“Yes and no,” she replied. “Mostly, no.”

Egan had already turned back to the report, re-reading the first page. “And this is how they get the duck liver?”

Her eyes lit up. Maybe he wouldn’t scream at her after all. “Yes sir. They force-feed the animals to fatten them up.” She paused, remembering how the pictures had sickened her, how seeing the tubes shoved down their throats had nearly made her gag. “The ducks are kept in tight cages so they can’t exercise or even move around.”

“Geez! And they’re serving this right here in Ranchero?”

“Yes,” she answered quickly. “At a price that would water your eyes.” She stopped, not sure she wanted to remind him how much she’d charged on the company card.

Egan dropped the report on his desk and leaned back in the chair, hands behind his head, making his ears protrude even more. “This is going to ruffle a few feathers at Longhorn Prime Rib.” He grinned, obviously pleased with his play on words.

Jordan shifted in the chair. “I was totally complimentary about the restaurant in general.” She thought about the Chocolate Decadence Cake that had doubled as breakfast that morning. “The desserts were phenomenal and the service – fantastic.”

Egan studied her face, his head tilted as if in deep thought. “I had you pegged for a simple meat and potatoes girl. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why you’d order this when you’re obviously so outraged at how they get it.”

Here it is! This was where she’d have to admit she was clueless when it came to fancy food. This was where he’d realize what a big mistake he’d made giving her the job. “The waiter recommended it. Said it was imported from Canada. Since I knew it was too expensive to ever try on my own, I went with it.”

“I still find it hard to believe you’d even order the dish, knowing how you feel about it.”

“I thought it was chicken,” she blurted, looking away for a moment, imagining the pink slip falling from this week’s pay envelope.

Egan threw back his head and laughed. And continued to laugh until Jordan finally gave in and smiled.

“So, let’s see,” he began when he was finally able to speak. “I have a culinary expert who has no idea what she orders at restaurants.” He slapped the desk. “That’s rich. Loretta would never see the humor in that, of course, nor would she be caught dead ordering anything but a thick, juicy steak.” He leaned forward and lowered his voice. “And just between you and me, she wouldn’t know foie gras from chicken piccata, either, even if it bit her on her overpaid butt.”

“I’m sorry, sir. Maybe you should give this job to someone else.”

His eyes bored into her. “Are you joking? This is going to grab the attention of every animal lover in Ranchero who probably has never even looked at Loretta’s column before.” He slid the papers across the desk. “Take this down to the copy room ASAP. I want it in tonight’s edition.”

Stunned, Jordan grabbed the report and headed for the door.

“Oh, and McAllister?”

She whirled around, expecting her little bubble of excitement to burst like a piñata at a birthday party with eight year old boys on a sugar high.

“From now on, you’ll do a bi-weekly column with recipes and food information. Fancy food like this. A couple of exposés would be great.” He rubbed his hands together. “If my gut is right, with the exception of the restaurant owner, the good citizens of this fine town are going to love you.”

“What about the Personals?”

He smiled. “Look at this as a freelance opportunity,” he said. “And the Personals as your day job. Now go.”

Jordan wondered how he could say that with a straight face, but she was too excited to care. She hurried out the door, surprised to see Jackie Frazier smiling. She’d obviously been eavesdropping. She imagined her, as Roseanne Roseannadanna saying, “It’s always something,” and she smiled back.

Who knew fatty duck liver could wipe the sarcasm off the secretary’s face and maybe even jump-start her career?

Suz: Your heroine, Jordan McAllister stumbles into more than a new career when she takes over the food critic position at the local paper. Can you give our readers a little hint about the trouble she gets into?

Liz: Her first assignment is to critique a steakhouse on the edge of town that has just reopened after being closed for six months when one of the owners died in a botched robbery. Since Jordan only eats hamburger meat well done, she asks her hunky waiter what on the menu isn't red meat, not seeing chicken anywhere. He tells her the foie gras must be good because the guy across the restaurant ordered the pricey dish every week. After one look at the squashy fatty duck liver, she nearly gags, and the entire entrée ends up in a borrowed purse. Two days later, the hunky waiter is found dead outside her apartment with her name and number in his pocket. And that's when it all starts.

Suz: Alex Moreland is the hero of LIVER LET DIE, how does he fit into the story?

Liz: Did I mention I am a romance writer at heart? Everything I write has a little romance in it. I knew I needed a love interest, but she's just new in the town, and the only friends she has are residents of her apartment. Most cozies are written in first person, but I am more comfortable with 3rd person and asked the editor if she had any problems with that or with multiple POVs. She said no. Later she had me take out a couple of short scenes written in a "he" point of view as the killer, but she liked that we were in Alex's head at times. She felt like the deleted scenes weren't necessary since we found out the info later in Jordan's POV. She was right. Anyway, Alex thinks Jordan is the killer, and she thinks he's been ransacking her apartment.

Suz: In cozy mysteries there are always some whacky secondary characters. Do you have any waiting to help or hinder Jordan and Alex?

Liz: I think the secondary characters are what convinced Berkley to buy the series. The editor loved the wacky residents of Empire Apartments who took Jordan under their wings that first day when she arrived broken and unsure of herself. There's a retired sixtyish cop with his seventyish psychic "lady friend", two gay guys who own the apartments, one of whom is my favorite character of all times to write, and a hippyish fifty year old who has been married four times and does all the cooking for the gang.

Suz: What's next for your series?

Liz: BEEF STOLEN-OFF will release in July, 2012. It's about modern day cattle rustling and has the same cast of characters with a fresh batch of suspects. Here's the down and dirty short blurb.
On an assignment to write a column about the famed Cattleman's Ball in Fort Worth, Texas, Jordan is the guest of wealthy ranch owner, Lucas Santana, who sees her review as a way to increase the sagging beef sales in the county. He's even hand-picked her escort, his right hand man, Rusty Morales, who looks like he just stepped off the cover of GQ, Cowboy Edition. But instead of dancing the night away, Jordan ends up in the emergency room where her date is DOA.

Currently, I am writing the third book of the series, MURDER FOR THE HALIBUT, where I have sent Jordan and her friends on a Caribbean Cruise to judge a cooking competition. (think Bravo's Chopped.)

One last thing before I have to shut up-beginning October 4th through the 31st, you can enter the LLD contest where the prize is a Pandigital Kitchen Technology Center worth $399. I'm also putting up my straight mystery, MORTAL DECEPTION, on Amazon next week as a marketing tool for LLD, kind of a try-me-you-might-like-me thing. For the entire month of October, it will download for $.99. Check out my website www.lizlipperman.com for details on both.

Okay, I've done all the talking. Now, it's your turn. Since I had to walk into B & N and pick several books to tutor me about cozies with no knowledge of cozy writers, I made an interesting observation about myself. I made my choices after reading the first line. The cover may catch my eye initially, but ultimately, it has to grab me with the opening line. What about you? What teases you into buying a book from a debut author or one you're not familiar with? The cover? Blurb? Chatting with them on a blog? All of the above? None of the Above?

I have one copy of LIVER LET DIE to give away, thanks to Berkley. To enter, leave a comment with a valid email address. This is open to US residents (publisher's request.) Suz will pick the winner. Before I leave, I want to thank Suz and the Romance Bandits again for having me here today. Answering these questions has been fun.

Heroes on Horseback: My Lifelong Love Affair

2011-09-27T00:01:00.000-04:00

I'm very happy to host the fabulous Kathleen Eagle today. She's talking about the wonderful world of horses, cowboys and the American West. Take it away, Kathleen.

Hello, Bandits!

I have a new book for you. And if you bear with me for a bit of book talk, maybe bare your soul a bit in a comment, we’ll enter you in a drawing for a chance to win one of the earlier books in my current series.

ONE BRAVE COWBOY (on sale 9/20 from Harlequin Silhouette) introduces another competitor for Mustang Sally’s Wild Horse Training Competition, a thread I’ve carried through four of the six books connected with my fictitious Double D Wild Horse Sanctuary in South Dakota.

His name is Cougar, and he served in the Army with Mary Tutan (ONCE A FATHER). He’s a wounded warrior, but his worst scars are not visible. Newly released from a VA hospital, this Indian cowboy desperately needs to come to terms with his losses at home and on the battlefield. He came home from his first tour in the Middle East to find his girlfriend—the woman he’d planned to marry—with another man. During his second tour he was involved in an incident in which his best friend and several civilians were killed, and he blames himself. His hope for saving his sanity--the horses his brother was keeping for him--were sold during his absence. His entry into Mustang Sally’s Wild Horse Training Competition is the means he’s using to find his way among the living after pulling himself back from the brink of suicide.

Then he meets Celia Banyon and her young son, who was injured in an accident and whose worst scars are also not visible.

I’ve written lots of stories featuring Indian cowboys. To begin with, I’m married to one. We met during the summer I took off from working in the college library and headed west in search of adventure. I was a summer volunteer on a Dakota (North and South) reservation. I’d always been interested in American Indian culture, always loved Western movies, and always always loved horses. I’m not a natural athlete by any means, but I used part of my summer earnings to pay for riding lessons when I was in college. Horses are majestic and magical, sensitive and strong. From the moment I met the man who was to become my husband—a man whose world was quite different from mine—we had two key things in common. We loved books and horses. And I just love the smell of horse on a man.

My husband has a way with horses, and he’s tamed his share of them over the years. He speaks their language. Because horses are prey animals, they are extremely sensitive. They seem to connect with people who are wounded or hurting. I’ve known many people—particularly women—who find solace in the act of grooming a horse. Horse therapy has come into its own in recent years. Prisoners, troubled teens, abused women, special needs children—so many people turn to horses for renewal and healing. This is a theme that arises time after time in my Double D Wild Horse Sanctuary series. It’s a theme that complements the love story beautifully.

Let’s talk books, writing, or whatever else comes to mind. Have you ever had a moment when you connected in some mystical way with an animal, some kind of communication that surpasses human expectations?

One commenter will win her/his choice of one of these four books from Kathleen's backlist.

Bandit Booty from Cassondra, Dianna Love and Feenix!

2011-09-26T23:57:00.000-04:00

I apologize for the delay in letting y'all know my winners for this month--I posted this the day after Dianna was here, but apparently blogger ate the post, and I just now clued in with a "where are my winners?" sort of squinty face as I thought about it.

So...trying again, to give away some Bandit Booty..

The winner of the $5 Bath & Body Works gift card from my "Steamy Hot Soak" blog is...

MsHellion!

And the winner of ALTERANT, Book 2 in the Belador series, from the "Real friends help friends...Babysit?" blog with guests Dianna Love and Feenix is......

Sheree!

Y'all send an email to our Bandits email listed on the sidebar, with your snail mail address, and I'll get your prizes out to you, pronto!

And thanks for reading and commenting!

BANDITA BOOTY!!!!!!!!

2011-09-26T23:35:00.002-04:00

The winner of a copy of REDEEMING THE ROGUE is

MOZETTE!!!

If you can go to www.DonnaMacMeans.com and send me your contact information, I'll get a copy in the mail ASAP.

Thanks for visiting the blog!

On a Bender

2011-09-26T00:01:00.006-04:00

by Nancy and Jeanne

N: Jeanne and I both enjoy books that don't fit squarely into a niche, romances or books with strong romantic elements that bend the genre lines. So today we're chatting about those.

J: You know, that always sounds hinky. In a Bend-it-like-Beckham kind of way. (Speaking of Genre Bending)

N: Bwhahaha! I didn't start out reading as much romance as I do now. I discovered science fiction (and comic books) and mystery first. I read YA romances without realizing that's what they were, courtesy of my local library and the Scholastic Book Club, but I didn't read romance as an adult. I did read historical fiction with romance in it, but I didn't pay much attention when the romance genre exploded in the late 1970s and early 1980s. I read a handful of those early sagas, but I was in school, preoccupied with trying to decide where my life was going. I stuck to the genres I'd come to know better.

J: Nancy, you and I kind of followed the same path on this. I too read a lot of science fiction and fantasy, as well as a lot of historical fiction. I also read a lot of biographies when I was younger.

N: Once I started reading romance, however, I was hooked. Even when reading other genres, I now much prefer books that have a strong romantic plot line to those that don't, although I'll settle for a pretty low threshold of romance in a thriller. A couple of years back, I read a debut military science fiction novel with an interesting premise. It was well done but didn't draw me in, and I realized that was because there was no romance in it. None. Zip. Zilch. Nada. So I didn't read the next book.

The series is now in hardcover, so it clearly has many avid readers. I just don't happen to be among them.

N: The current market is doing a lot to make me happy. Romance is slowly, sometimes grudgingly, allowing elements from other genres, like action, magic, and suspense, to assume prominent roles. At the same time, romance is establishing a strong presence in science fiction, fantasy and in mystery, bending the genre lines to a degree that wouldn't have been possible several years ago. I love historical and contemporary romances that are pure romance--nothing extra added in, but I also love the extra elements crossing genres. So today's blog is about the line benders.

A couple of books I recently put me in mind of this change. One was Meljean Brook's The Iron Duke, which I read because Barbara Vey recommended it when I interviewed her at Dragon*Con. It's steampunk, with a dark, gritty, distinct world. The worldbuilding and the dark tone are worthy of science fiction, but the romance is the core of the story. The setting seems to be around the turn of the last century, considering the references to King Edward.

The title character saved England from invaders known as The Horde. The heroine is a police inspector on the trail of a killer who dumped a body onto the hero's house. He joins her because, well, it's personal now, doubly so when he learns he knew and respected the victim who drew her to his home. Pursuing the killer drags them into a conspiracy to kill the thousands of English men and women, including the two of them, who carry Horde technology they can't live without.

Conspiracy to commit mass murder is more common in thrillers than in romance. There's the worldbuilding, as I said, and the dark, gritty tone. Oh, and zombies, who technically belong to horror but have begun cropping up in romance.

J: That's another mindbender, isn't it? I mean zombies? In Romance? Seriously? But I've been seeing it too. Since you mentioned it to me, I picked up Iron Duke. haven't had a chance to read it yet though.

N: I know you'll enjoy it. The other book was Bloodlands, by Christine Cody, who also writes the Vampire Babylon series as Chris Marie Green. Now, I'm not a huge fan of vampire books, particularly not of vampire heroes. But I am a big fan of post-apocalyptic stories, and this is a post-apocalyptic vampire romance Western. Yes, really. I debated with myself in the store for some time, fearing this could be truly terrible, but I couldn't resist that combination of elements.

While I found the first quarter a bit slow, it was good enough that I felt it was going to get better. So I kept reading. Once the bad guy appeared, things picked up quickly. The hero is a vampire searching for his lost (human) love in the wreck of civilization. People kill monsters--vampires, shifters, and others--so he doesn't want anyone to know what he is. He has become very good at passing for human. The heroine is part of an isolated community with secrets to keep.

Naturally, his quest and her secrets collide in the midst of the final confrontation against the villain who wants to wipe out the heroine's community. Despite the paranormal elements and the setting, this book reads like a romance. But it's published by ROC--perhaps because HEA isn't guaranteed at the end of the book, and romance requires that.

J: This is another one I'm going to have to read. I mean vampire westerns? Really? But this sounds quite good.

N: I liked it a lot. I'd like to see some continuing couples in romance, romantic arcs that don't tie up with HEA at the end of the book. The popularity of Eve Dallas and Roarke among romance readers implies that's do-able, but it isn't happening so far. Speaking of genre benders, those books are, first and foremost, serial killer police procedurals. The romantic arc, though, is much more intense than is usual in the mystery/suspense genre. It's a line bender. I'm not featuring it here, though, because with the latest book just out, I don't want us to spoil New York to Dallas for anyone who hasn't read it yet.

J: I'd love to see more of this too, Nancy. Her series is also a futuristic, and Nora is known to frequently bring other paranormal elements, like witchcraft and psychic abilities.

N: You know I loved Nora's Sign of Seven trilogy, and that actually had horror elements in it. I don't usually read horror. Jessica Andersen's Nightkeepers are romance with strong, strong fantasy elements. Jon Land's Caitlin Strong series are thrillers with a strong romance element. C. S. Harris's Sebastian St. Cyr novels are mysteries, but Sebastian's love life plays a prominent role.

I'm also seeing a lot of urban fantasy with romance-like plots but romantic arcs that continue beyond the end of the first book. Laura Anne Gilman's Retrievers are a prime example. Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels books (starting with Magic Bites) have become increasingly romantic as the series continued, with the romantic arc being a driving element in the last couple of books.

J: As you know, I love the Retriever Series as well. Katherine Kurtz and Deborah Turner Harris's Adept series (although there hasn't been a book out in that series for several years) has quite the long arc. The ongoing/developing romance in The Adept is subtle, but quite good. The longer arc on the romance seems to actually be more intense in some ways than in a one-book.

N: I just started M. J. Scott's Shadow Kin, which is technically urban fantasy but starts out just like a romance. The heroine is an assassin with paranormal abilities who comes to kill the hero. He has abilities of his own and turns the tables. I'm assuming this couple will stick together in future books, but we'll see. I haven't finished it. The author's website describes a different couple for the next book, so maybe this one ends with HEA. The book is unusual, at least in my experience, in that both characters are written in first person.

N: Anne Aguirre's RITA-nominated Sirantha Jax series (first one is Grimspace) are also prime examples. There's a science fiction primary plot, but the romance between Jax and March is iKathern ntense and often painful. With one more book to go, I'm hoping for a big payoff there.

J: As you know, I love Anne Aguirre's novels. Grimspace was superb. And since you sent it to me, I'm guessing that's why I liked it so much!

So, we'd love to know, what are you reading now? Do you like your romances straight, with no paranormal or other elements? Or do you like a bit of boom or magic or other paranormal elements with your romance?

The Cutest Guys of the New TV Season

2011-09-25T00:05:00.006-04:00

By Kate

Here in southern California, the average high temperature in August is 85 degrees. In September, it’s 83, and at night it gets down into the mid-sixties. We can’t exactly say “Fall is in the air.” No, here in the motion picture capital of the world, we say “Fall is on the air.” The change of seasons in sunny southern California happens on TV.

It takes a lot to tempt me away from my books. And by “a lot,” I mean “cute guys.” And if there are a lot of cute guys on the show, I’m even more tempted! Here is my take on the Top 10 TV Shows of Fall 2011, based entirely on the cute factor of the male actors on the show:

Hawaii Five-0
Alex O’Loughlin in swim trunks. ‘Nuff said.

Castle
While “researching” this article (sighhhhhhhh……), I discovered that there’s a Castle Convention in Los Angeles on November 12. They have a website and everything: Castle Convention. Alas, Nathan Fillion won’t be there!

Blue Bloods
Tom Selleck still curls my toes! This is a man who has aged very well.

NCIS
Mark Harmon, another example of a man who got better with age.

Covert Affairs
A non-traditional hottie, Christopher Gorham.

White Collar
Matt Bomer. Ohhhhhh, Bomer!
I love you so much,
I want to write a poemer.

Dancing with the Stars
Who cares about the celebrities when we can watch Maksim dance? The man can moooove!

The next three shows are brand new. I haven’t seen them, but I’m tempted to watch because the cute guy factor is off the charts!

A Gifted Man
Doesn’t Patrick Wilson look a *lot* like Paul Newman? I’m a sucker for blue eyes!

Grimm
David Guintoli looks man enough for the job of capturing or slaying storybook creatures.

Person of Interest
Jim Caviezel in a slick weekly thriller, produced by J.J. Abrams? I’m there!

Best show of the summer: Suits
Gabriel Macht is an honorable lawyer with a slickster veneer. Love him!

Who do you think are the hottest guys on TV today? Let’s play a game. Tell us what book you're reading right now, and what actor you picture in the role of hero. I’m reading Maya Banks’ THE DARKEST HOUR and I picture … mmm … decisions, decisions ... I picture Alex O’Loughlin in the role of the hero, Ethan. (Oh heck, I picture Alex O’Loughlin in almost everything!) Okay, your turn!

Days of the Week

2011-09-23T23:59:00.000-04:00

by KJ Howe

Have you ever wondered where the names came from for the days of the week? I find the origins of these accepted standards intriguing, and I hope you will as well. Who decided on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday as the names of our 24-hour days of the week--and why?

The names of the days of the week from the Roman period have been both named after the seven planets of astronomy and numbered, with Sunday as the beginning. In Slavic languages, a numbering system was adopted, but it began with Monday. An even older tradition of names in Ancient Indian Astrology could arguably be the origin of all these naming systems. Still, these systems have been accepted in countless languages, with a few exceptions resulting from a number of religious and secular considerations.

In English, we call our days of the week after Saxon gods, apart from Saturday. The French call their days of the week after Roman gods. But the Saxon and Roman gods who look after the same day are the same type of god. The table below shows the various names used in the different languages. The Roman months were the same as ours, but our weeks were not. The Romans had eight days in their week, with a market day instead of a weekend, so they didn't use these names. I'm sure many of us wish we had an eighth day in our week. If so, what would you name it? How would you spend the time? What is your favorite day of the week and why? The best answer to these questions will win a $10 Barnes and Noble gift certificate.

English	Saxon	Title of God	Roman	French
Monday	Mona	The Moon	Moon	Lundi
Tuesday	Tiu	God of War	Mars	Mardi
Wednesday	Woden	The Cunning God	Mercury	Mercredi
Thursday	Thor	Thunder God	Jove	Jeudi
Friday	Freya	Goddess of Love	Venus	Vendredi
Saturday	---	God of Time	Saturn	Samedi
Sunday	Sunne	The Sun	Sun	Dimanche

Never Quit Learning!

2011-09-23T00:35:00.001-04:00

by Donna MacMeans

I was on the University of Cincinnati campus this weekend to see my two star general (retired) brother receive an award from his alma mater for achieving the highest rank of any UC ROTC graduate. That's him in black accepting a plaque (below) ...guess I needed a zoom attachment on my ipad (grin - you should see the one of him officiating the coin toss at the football game that followed this presentation - talk about tiny!)

Classes start midweek on campus so besides the football game, there was an excitement in the air of moving in, new beginnings, and new challenges.

I loved my college years for the new experiences. A lot of growing up occurred in that environment. One of the reasons I chose

journalism as a major at Ohio State University, was that the program encouraged their students to take a wide variety of courses. After all, you never knew what sort of story you'd be asked to report about. Good to have a broad base of knowledge to draw upon.

Alas, I didn't graduate in journalism, though. Life interfered...and marriage...and moving - you know how it goes...so I ended up graduating in Accounting. However, the need to keep learning, to maintain a broad base of knowledge, never went away. Life seems to continually teach us new lessons - especially once children come along (grin) - but even if they don't, we travel, we learn to exist in new environments, we make new friends that challenge us with new skills.

Writing is especially challenging in this regard. Not only do we learn alot about ourselves in terms of sacrifice to create and write a story, but we have to learn about other things in the name of "worldbuilding" as well. It's called research. Such a dry academic name for an exciting challenging passion (grin). I once told a reader that I'd be able to generate books much faster if just once I actually knew what I was writing about. Maybe that's part of the joy of writing, doing the research and learning new things.

For Redeeming the Rogue (sorry, love that cover and so had to post it again - grin), I had to learn about the politics and specifics behind the assassination of President Garfield, the layout of Washington DC in 1881 when it was comprised of a great deal of swampland, the process and utensils of an eleven course meal, something about tramp steamers of the nineteen century, coffins, and the Irish movement for Home Rule.

For Casanova Code, my next book which I believe is to be released June 2012, I studied secret codes and how to break them, Victorian personal ads, Victorian pubs, rifles used by the army in 1890, rifle scopes, and Japanese erotica. (Y'all know I like a sexy book - grin).

I'm currently learning about Scotch whisky, the Highlands, and the temperance movement. I'm still early in the book so I'm sure that list will grow.

What about you? Do you find the process of learning exciting, or a chore? What life lessons have you learned? What research would you like to do (wink, wink). Let's all go back to school for the day to explore learning. I'll give away a copy of Redeeming the Rogue to someone who leaves a comment so they can experience the benefit of my research. (If you already have Redeeming the Rogue - just let me know and I'll send you one of my research books that I no longer use).

Board Games - Quick 5

2011-09-22T00:22:00.014-04:00

by Anna Sugden

The other night, we were discussing the fad of playing board games. It used to be that everywhere you went, from family visits to dinner parties with friends, the board games would come out and off everyone would go. [We won't mention the whole wives falling out with husbands, brothers and sisters not on speaking terms thing .]

Though many of us remember the days of Life, Monopoly or Scrabble, and Kerplunk, Mousetrap or Operation, there was also Trivial Pursuit, Pictionary and variations on the Charades theme.

Two of my favourites were Celebrity Taboo and PSI.

In Celebrity Taboo, you had to get people to guess which celebrity you were, but couldn't use certain key words eg how do you get people to guess you're Groucho Marx when you can't use words like cigar, mustache, brothers etc.

In PSI, again people had to guess which celebrity you were but this time it was by answering questions as if you were the celebrity. eg If you were a flower, what would you be?

So, for a bit of fun today, I thought we'd do a Board Games Quick 5.

1. Favourite board game

2. Most detested board game

3. Best and worst Trivial Pursuit category (Geography, Sports & Leisure, Entertainment, Art & Literature, Science & Nature, History)

4. If you were a flower, what would you be? If you were a drink, what would you be? If you were a type of shoe, what would you be?

5. Complete the following sentence: Imagine trying to get people to guess you were (insert name of celebrity) without mentioning the following words ... (insert words)

Here are my answers to start you off:

1. I used to love Mousetrap because it had all those different bits and contraptions!

2. Sorry, but it's Monopoly.

3. I was always terrible at Geography, but really good with Entertainment, Art & Literature or Science & Nature.

4. Flower: Red Gerbera daisy, Drink: Mojito, Shoe: something red, high-heeled, strappy, with zips, studs or a bow.

5. Imagine trying to get people to guess you were "Dolly Parton" without mentioned the following words ... boobs, country music, platinum blonde, high heels.

Over to you!

Another Prize Winner!

2011-09-22T00:01:00.001-04:00

The winner from Jo's Sunday blog "Secrets" is . . .

JANGA!!!

Please contact me at jo.lewisrobertson@yahoo.com to claim your prize.

Congratulations!

Late & Unclaimed Bandit Booty

2011-09-21T23:45:00.001-04:00

In the LATE Booty Department, we have the winner of the Techno-Freakia blog, who receives books from National, a New Orleans hot mat (I thought it was jazz, but I must've hallucinated; it's French Quarter Street signs), and a Jane Austen finger puppet, along with a New Orleans tote bag.

Congratulations, Kaelee!

In the UNCLAIMED Booty Department, DtchyCat and Runner10 have not claimed their July prizes, books from National. They have until the end of September to do so, and then I'm putting the books back in the prize pool.

Winner should send their snail mail info to romancebandits AT gmail DOT com and put "for Nancy" in the subject line.

In the Footsteps of Lois Lane

2011-09-21T00:23:00.006-04:00

by Nancy

Barbara Monajem's visit was scheduled for today but has been delayed until October 8 due to a scheduling conflict.

Those of you who're around here regularly probably remember Trish and I go to Dragon*Con every year. For five years, I volunteered in Nancy Knight's excellent Writer's Track, but I stopped when my guys started going to the con with me. This year, with the boy in college and the dh behind in class prep from the Great Move of Boy Property, I went to Atlanta by myself.

I like to be involved in the con, so I volunteered for both the Writer's Track and the Daily Dragon, the con's newspaper (most of it is online). I interviewed writers, mostly, but I also had the chance to chat with Barbara Vey about her blog, Beyond Her Book, and Debra Dixon about Bell Bridge Books, which sponsored the Writer's Track.

I also got to cover panels for Battlestar Galactica and Sanctuary. Thanks to my DD credential, I had a backstage seat for BSG (very hard to hear back there, since the sound system is aimed away from you) and a spot in the front row for Sanctuary (much better audio, and I was a mere ten feet from one of my SF heroines, Amanda Tapping--photo courtesy of Trish Milburn).

I glanced around as a woman in the uniform of Merlotte's Diner (from HBO's True Blood) walked by, and I thought, Gee, she looks like Trish. She turned to go to her seat, and I discovered she was Trish.

Not wanting to give up my precious front row seat, I phoned her from thirty feet away, and we connected after the panel for dinner. Thousands of people in the ballroom, and the only two banditas still connected!

We headed for the extremely overcrowded food court between the hotels, hunting for a spot along with Jedi, storm troopers, super-heroes, anime characters, barbarians, elves, gaming characters, Starfleet officers, and a host of others. To envision the food court, think Times Square on New Year's Eve but with a low ceiling and people constantly going back and forth to get food. The only commodity more valuable than a table is a chair.

I did email interviews before the con with S. M. Stirling, who writes alternate history, and frequent Lair guest Laura Anne Gilman. Thanks to a GRW buddy, I connected with C. L. Wilson to talk about the Tairen Soul series and what's next for her. She's doing a stand-alone, The Winter King, and then will return to the Fading Lands for Bel's and Gaelen's stories.

The interview with Barbara Vey happened purely by chance. I missed the parade because I needed to meet a friend at that time, and I made the mistake of walking into the Hyatt lobby five minutes after the parade ended and what appeared to be a large chunk of the planet's population seemed to have magically teleported in. Barbara was also struggling through the press but graciously agreed to seek out a quiet corner and chat.

Debra Dixon kindly took a few minutes from preparing her presentation to talk about Bell Bridge books and small-press publishing. She said one reason Bell Bridge decided to sponsor the Writer's Track is that the parent company, Belle Books, was born in a hotel room during DragonCon.

About halfway through the sleep-deprived weekend, I had the idea of blogging about being a Daily Dragon reporter. I'd spent the time surrounded by super-heroes, like Lois Lane, so the perfect finish for the blog, it seemed to me, would be a photo of me with Superman. Like Lois, y'know?

I saw Superman, with Zatanna the Magician, early in the con and took this photo. After I decided I needed a picture of myself with the Man of Steel, I did not see Superman again. At Dragon*Con! Hard to believe, I know. I did see Zombie Superman, but that wasn't really the look I wanted.

I mentioned this to my roommate, Debbie, as we were going up to our room about 11:30 Sunday night. A guy in the elevator said, "Superman was in the bar. With a slave-girl Leia, like, five minutes ago. A good-looking Superman." So we got off at the next floor, rode, down, and hit the bar.

No Superman.

The cop in the bar allowed as how he hadn't seen Superman in a while. We checked around on the next level down (2 bars there), but we couldn't find him. The people hanging over the escalator railing to people-watch hadn't seen the Man of Steel either--though one of them said he'd seen a "pod" of Supermen, five or six, traveling together during the weekend. Naturally, I never saw them! The cops by the escalator also had not seen Superman. I asked one of the cops how long he'd been there. He sighed and said, "a looong time."

At least with Superman, you don't have to describe him. Everybody knows who you're looking for. At this point, I was ready to give up, but Debbie was on the scent. "The Marriott!" she said. "More people in costume there."

So across the sky bridge (still heavily traveled though midnight had now come and gone) we went. We spotted one Superman whose costume wasn't really all that great and decided to look farther. We did see a comic-book-perfect Captain America, minus his helmet, but Lois doesn't hang with CA. She hangs with Supes.

"Look!" Debbie grabbed my arm. "Superman's tights and boots!"

Sure enough, they were, as we discovered when we squeezed through the crowd. However, this Superman had dispensed with the shirt and cape and had painted the big red S on his bare chest. A very nice chest, to be sure, but again not the look I wanted.

At this point, nearing 1:30 a.m., we conceded defeat. I was so fixated on finding Superman, I didn't think to have Debbie take a photo of me wearing my DD credential. With everyone leaving the next morning and the costumes packed away, I never did find Superman. But that's okay. In the olden days of the DC Universe, Lois didn't snag Superman, either.

For more information about Dragon*Con, click here. If you'd like to read the stories I wrote for the Daily Dragon, click here.

Have you ever gone on an obsessive hunt for something? If so, did you find it? Is there an event you try to attend every year, just because you love it?

The winner of the August 26 blog about summer vacation will be posted just before midnight tonight. Apologies for the delay!

More Chit Chat

2011-09-20T05:00:00.000-04:00

by Beth

It's time for another Chit Chat post! On my website I have a Chit Chat page where every month I share what music I'm listening to, what books I'm reading, things I'm currently loving, what I'm watching, what I'm looking forward to and which of my recipes I'm craving.

Unfortunately, I've been in the writing cave finishing up the first book of my new trilogy for Superromance (sent it in on Weds. Yay!) which didn't leave me much time to update my Chit Chat page. But that's okay because I had so much fun the last time you all joined in on the Chit Chat right here in the lair, I thought we could do it again :-)

Here's what I'm currently...

...Listening to:

Cheers (Drink to that) by Rihanna

Typical by Mute Math

...Reading:

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

All the magazines that have accumulated over the past four months *g*

...Loving:

My new standing desk! My husband made me a desk where I could stand and write and I adore it! I really do move around a lot more when I use it :-)

Football! I'm a big football fan (NFL) and have enjoyed watching the games these past two Sundays (go, Steelers!)

...Watching:

Project Runway. Love Anya and Anthony Ryan and I really like Viktor's designs.

Barefoot Contessa. If I had to pick just one show on Foodnetwork to watch, this would be it *g*

...Looking Forward To:

Working on the second book of my new trilogy. The hero is a bad boy with some serious rough edges. I love him already *ggg*

What's Your Number? I've been an Anna Faris fan since The House Bunny and I can't wait to see this movie starring her and Chris Evans :-)

...Craving:

Pumpkin Cake Delight

1 (18.25 oz) box yellow cake mix

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin pie filling, ready to use (NOT plain canned pumpkin)

1/2 cup butter, melted

Pour pie filling into bottom of 9" x 13" baking dish. Sprinkle cake mix over top. Pour melted butter over cake mix.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes. Test with a butter knife - if it pulls out clean, it's done. Serve warm with whipped cream.

Tell me what you're currently:

Listening to

Reading

Loving

Watching

Looking forward to

Craving

Let's Chit Chat!

And speaking of fun Chit Chats, check out this video taken by Rhapsody Book Club at Romance Writers of America's 2011 Literacy signing! Sorry, I couldn't get the embedded code to work. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5Q_lnDLL08&feature=youtu.be

A Man Like That

2011-09-19T00:29:00.002-04:00

By Susan Sey

Everybody, I'd like you to meet my good friend and chapter mate Alison Henderson! Alison, this is everybody. Alison graciously agreed to sit down with me for an interview about her latest release from the Wild Rose Press, A Man Like That.

Susan: I'd like to start by complimenting your voice. It has a beautiful, lyrical quality to it without ever feeling fussy. It's a perfect fit for the Ozark setting of A Man Like That, as well as the post-Civil War era. Can you talk a little about how you developed your voice? Did your natural voice lead you to the time frame/setting for A Man Like That, or did you choose your time frame/setting first then tweaked your voice to fit it?

Alison: What a lovely compliment! I’m afraid I can’t take much credit for “developing” my voice. After reading my first book, Harvest of Dreams, both a co-worker and my hairdresser commented that the book “sounded exactly like” me. Since it’s a historical, I’m not sure how to take that, but they claim to have enjoyed the book, so I guess it’s OK. I do think my natural voice led me to write American-set historicals rather than the more popular English or Scottish versions. I love to read about rakes and highlanders, but I was afraid my less formal, more direct American voice wouldn’t sound British to anyone.

It’s clear from the lovely descriptive passages in AMLT that you know and love the Ozarks. Can you tell us about your history with the area?

Alison: I grew up in Kansas City, where “going to the lake” usually meant the Lake of the Ozarks. I vacationed there with my family as a child and spent a week at Girl Scout camp in the Ozarks in the fourth grade. I remember it as buggy and blistering hot, but the land was also wildly beautiful. I was an art history major in college and have always responded to landscapes in a visual way. I relied on the paintings in my mind to bring the beauty of the Ozarks alive for my readers.

Your heroine Jessy is a wonderfully headstrong redhead who brought to mind my favorite Julie Garwood heroines. I found her an endearing mix of bravado and naiveté, and really enjoyed watching her mature into somebody with the patience and compassion to truly love and be loved. Can you tell us anything about how she came to be? Do your characters just show up and start talking or do you have to discover them?

Alison: Jessy began as a secondary character in Harvest of Dreams. She was the heroine’s best friend and meant to be a foil for the quieter, more serious main character. She was so vibrant and so much fun to write that after I finished Harvest of Dreams I knew she deserved her own story. As a secondary character, she wasn’t fully developed. I knew she could be more than the stereotypical feisty redhead, and I wanted to give her the chance to grow and mature. I usually do quite a bit of character work with the protagonists before I start a story, but the secondary characters start out less well-formed. A Man Like That gave Jessy the opportunity to blossom.

Speaking of characters who bloom, tell us about Morgan Bingham. It sounds like he spent some time on the wrong side of the law in a previous book. Was he always destined to be a hero, or did he surprise you? And if so tell us about the redemption process. (Because as you know, I’m all about redeeming the outlaw with the reluctant heart of gold.)

Alison: Morgan is by far the most troubled hero I’ve ever written. As a teenager, he joined the Confederate guerilla band led by “Bloody” Bill Anderson and after the Civil War drifted into the company of Jesse James. By the beginning of A Man Like That, Morgan has left the James Gang to face the demons of his past by returning to his family deep in the Ozark Mountains. He’s no longer an outlaw, but he‘s deeply scarred by things he’s seen and done.
When he first appeared in Harvest of Dreams, I had no idea he would end up a hero, but after his reaction to Jessy at their first meeting I had to find a way to redeem him. Morgan is a man who doesn’t believe he’s worthy of love, and he fights redemption tooth and nail. Ultimately, the unselfish love of a good woman wins him over.

What’s next for you?

Alison: After two historicals, I switched gears to try my hand at contemporary romance. I’ve recently finished a sharp, snappy story about an ex-FBI agent who owns her own all-female bodyguard agency. She signs on to protect a sexy former CIA agent-turned-bestselling author on a book tour and ends up fighting her attraction to her client along with a would-be assassin. This book was a complete change of pace, and I had great fun with the witty contemporary dialogue.

Wow, that sounds like a lot of fun! Can't wait to get my hands on it! Before you go, Alison, is there anything you'd like to ask our readers?

Alison: How do you feel about the importance of setting in romance novels? Are there some settings that always catch your eye and others you try to avoid?

So how about it, everybody? Do you have an opinion about setting? Share!

SECRETS

2011-09-18T00:01:00.006-04:00

by Jo Robertson

We all keep secrets, right?

Some big, some small, some harmless, some devastating.

The old adage goes, two people can keep a secret if one of them is dead.

Many books, especially romances, hinge on the concept of a secret – a secret marriage, a secret baby, a past misdeed or mistake, a hidden flaw or secret heritage – the list is endless.

In THE AVENGER, my second romantic thriller in the Bigler County series, Jackson Holt is an agent for a clandestine government organization. His assignments require that he complete all kinds of activities, primarily assassinations of persons the Invictus Organization deems "bad guys." After nearly twenty years, he's jaded and troubled, a man searching for redemption, but unsure if he'll ever obtain it.

To complicate his situation he's re-assigned to a case he didn't solve four years ago, and the job brings him in contact with the one woman he's never forgotten. They were childhood sweethearts and he betrayed her.

The problem with secrets, of course, is that they have a way of coming to the surface. The question is can Olivia forgive Jack? Can Jack be redeemed? Can he change, considering his murky past?

In a romance, I think the secret has to be something crippling; otherwise a frank conversation would clear the air, and the hero and heroine would "make up" and have their happily ever after. Don't you just hate when the solution is so simple, but the protagonists fail to use that very complicated tool – a heart-to-heart conversation?

Well, it's not that simple, is it? Layers and layers of experience and emotion lie beneath the superficial surface. Our hero and heroine have to break through often stupendous barriers to uncover what's beneath. After all, they have to work for their satisfied ending.

What do you think, readers? Is the old adage true, that two people can keep a secret if one of them is dead? Do you enjoy stories about "secrets" and the damage they do? Are you impatient if the story seems silly or contrived?

Today I'm giving away a free download of "The Avenger," Jackson and Olivia's story. Or, if you prefer, a free print copy. Be sure to leave a comment and help me celebrate the release of my second book!

The Drudgery

2011-09-17T01:00:00.000-04:00

by Christie Kelley

Happy Saturday. Or is it? While you are all sitting at your computers, maybe sipping some nice hot coffee, I'm doing the Saturday routine. Cleaning the house, laundry, and yard work. Okay, not yard work.

And yet yard work is what should be doing. I had planned on finally mowing my lawn since my new mower arrived on Monday.

Had is the key word.

I finally opened up the box last night only to discover that one of the wheels was broken in shipment. Normally, I wouldn't be too upset over another week of not mowing. But if you haven't heard, we've had a little rain on the East Coast lately (little as in 15 or so inches). My grass is now up to my calves. I'm afraid to think about how high it's going to be by the time they send out the new wheel. Really, I'm afraid of what might be lurking in the tall grass.

So instead of being outside on this beautiful almost fall day, I'll be inside dusting and vacuuming. In a word...yuck! Actually, the dusting and vacuuming I don't mind too much, it's the bathroom cleaning I can do without. (and yet, can't).

Laundry, I'm okay with. It's not really all that difficult. Besides, I get to relax in front of the TV for a while as I fold the clean clothes.

Cleaning the kitchen seems to take the longest and yet I get the most satisfaction out of that room being finished.

I have discovered that having two kittens only makes the entire process of cleaning the house take so much longer. They want to be with me while I'm using all the harsh chemicals in the bathrooms. So now I have to close the door to keep them out and me locked inside with the fumes. No bathroom fan can handle that. Or they decide that once I finish mopping they should walk across the damp floor, leaving little kitty footprints everywhere.
(sigh). Good thing they're cute!

So hope about you? Is Saturday your day for chores? Which ones do you mind the least...the most? Anyone have a house cleaner (I so wish I did)?

And weren't we supposed to have Rosie the robot cleaners by now?

In the Arms of the Marquess

2011-09-16T00:17:00.000-04:00

posted by Nancy
Katherine Ashe's latest debut, Swept Away by a Kiss, was a Romantic Times Top Pick and a nominee for Best First Historical Romance in the Reviewers Choice Best Book Awards. In the Arms of A Marquess, her latest release, received 4.5 stars from Romantic Times along with a K.I.S.S. award for its hero, Lord Ben Dorée.

Welcome back, Katharine!

The description of In the Arms of a Marquess on your website implies Ben and Octavia, the hero and heroine, have a past. Please tell us about it.

Ben and Octavia do indeed have a past together — a past in which their young, passionate, and forbidden love ended in heartbreak. I can’t say much more without giving spoilers, but most assuredly neither of them forgot that love affair… or ever truly believed it was over.

What's the biggest obstacle for each of them when they're reunited?

Both of them play roles now that don’t suit their souls. Lord Ben Doreé, a marquess but also lord of an empire of sorts — a secret organization that spreads its net far beyond England — holds enormous responsibility over many people. His duties to this empire rule him, though all he wishes is to escape it in the company of the girl he once loved.

Miss Octavia Pierce is a naturally adventuresome lady with a frank, honest approach to society. But since her heartbreak years earlier she has learned to withhold her emotions and not to fully trust. The greatest obstacles they face in reuniting are their own wounded hearts. Their fierce desire for one another, not to mention villains plotting against them, makes healing those hearts a tumultuous matter indeed.

The book is partially set in India. Do you think more exotic settings are coming back to the romance genre?

The book takes place in England, although there are a few scenes — memories from the past — set in India where Ben and Octavia first met.

I don’t know about the romance genre as a whole embracing more unusual settings these days. Perhaps, and I hope! (I’m particularly excited about Anna Randol’s upcoming debut set in Constantinople.) But I certainly like to take advantage of Britain’s vast, rich and exciting empire in writing my books. I adore throwing my heroes and heroines into each other’s arms in London ballrooms as much as locking them in embraces aboard ship decks and beneath palm trees.

It’s such fun contrasting the rules and regulations of propriety in Regency society with the vital danger and adventure of the rest of the world that society depended upon for its wealth. And honestly, I just can’t get enough of a hero who is a highly cultured gentleman in one role and a man of action in his other role. The Scarlett Pimpernel will remain one of my favorite heroes of all time. I love heroes with secret identities, and the complexity and richness of the British Empire during this era just begs me to write them.

Did you have to do a lot of research?

I’ve been researching sea travel, piracy, smuggling and mercantile business in the Georgian through Victorian eras for over a decade. I’ve long adored the history of India in particular, especially under British rule. For this book I began with what I already knew as a starting point to develop the plot broadly, then I interviewed my university colleagues who are scholars of India and British India as to the best direction for my research, then after I researched and wrote the book I checked the details with them. I loved every bit of the reading I did for this story, and I’m very fortunate to have experts in the field amongst my family and friends.

Would you like to share an excerpt?

This is a bit of a scene that happens shortly after Ben and Octavia meet again in England after seven years apart.

Ben pushed to his feet in the gin-soaked pub. His clogged head spun.

Styles laid a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll take you to Hauterive’s. Why you came in here when the company there would welcome you, I haven’t the slightest.”

“No. I’m for home.” He started toward the door.

“You disappeared from Lady Ashford’s party so swiftly I hadn’t an idea of it until you were gone. If I’d have known you were heading here I would have dissuaded you.”

“Couldn’t have.” Ben pushed through the lollers at the tavern’s entry and headed toward the mews down the alley with bleary eyes but hound-like precision. If he hadn’t trekked this path hundreds of times in his university days, he would be lost now. Lost in London’s hells and lost in confounded memories, neither of which locations he particularly wished to be.

“Who was that girl you were dancing with, the one that looked like an Irish Athena, all sublime figure and eyes of soft steel?”

Ben blinked to shut out the image of Octavia’s body wrapped in the shimmering gown, her soft lips, pinkened cheeks, and the sensation of her trembling fingers within his. But behind his lids the image was even stronger, and his hand still felt hot where hers had lain.

“Good God, Walker,” he grunted, “you and Constance would make a perfect pair, both of you curious as a couple of magpies.”

“Lady Constance asked about the girl too? Is she jealous?”

“Only of your paramours.”

“Then the lady at Ashford’s is a paramour?”

Ben shook his head, his stomach rolling. “Not mine.” Not any longer.

He moved across the street in unsteady strides.

But why not? No one controlled his destiny now. His life was his own. Why not seduce a beautiful, deceitful woman, a woman whose flavor yet remained upon his tongue? Why not take pleasure where he wished?

Because he could not then and still could not believe in her deceit, although he had tried to convince himself of it again and again. To absolve himself of guilt.

He stumbled into the stable and pressed his face into his horse’s satiny neck. Taking to the bottle tonight had been a mistake. He needed clarity. A pitcher of icy water over his head would do it, just as her smile had earlier, so brief it seemed she didn’t even know she smiled, washing his vision clear for an instant as it always had…

An enticing peek, thanks!

Please tell us about the K.I.S.S. and Teal campaign.

Through its K.I.S.S. and Teal campaign Avon Books wants to raise awareness about the symptoms of Ovarian Cancer. The symptoms are quiet, so Ovarian Cancer has often been called the whispering disease; women don’t know they have it until it’s too late. There is still no screening test for Ovarian Cancer. Avon has donated an initial $25,000 to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance in the hopes that by raising awareness and funds for OC research, a screening test will be developed. 25 cents from the sale of each of the seven K.I.S.S. and Teal titles, up to an additional $25,000, will go to the OCNA. Please spread the word about these symptoms and help us shout against the whisper!

For the symptoms of Ovarian Cancer: http://www.ovariancancer.org/about-ovarian-cancer/symptoms. Readers can learn more about K.I.S.S. and Teal at http://www.kissandteal.com. To enter a sweepstakes by pledging to tell friends about Ovarian Cancer (and win great prizes, including books and Amazon gift cards!), please visit http://www.facebook.com/ShoutAgainsttheWhisper.

To learn more about Katharine and her work, check out her website or visit her at The Ballroom Blog.

Who are your favorite couple reunited after a painful past encounter? Who's your favorite unconventional heroine? What's your favorite setting for a romance?

Go Away so I Can Miss You--Too Soon for Gen X Nostalgia

2011-09-15T00:08:00.001-04:00

by Christina Brooke

I was shocked. SHOCKED, I tell you, to learn the number of years it has been since I was a senior at high school.

The truth came home to roost when I was invited to my school reunion this year.

Really? Was it that many years since I'd darkened those hallowed halls wearing a deconstructed nun's habit and panama hat?

Surely not. Surely it was only yesterday that I was doing try-hard headbanging to Smells Like Teen Spirit and envying Kate Moss's waifish drug-chic look. Only slightly longer since I begged my mother for a fluorescent t-shirt (she agreed to socks) and danced around my friend's bedroom to WHAM!

But there you go, time has not stood still since I drank my first free Black Russian at City Rowers on Ladies' Night Tuesday. My theory is that years don't age you. Children do. Still, I mustn't have been feeling terribly old despite my 2.0 children because that number on the reunion invitation really smacked me right between the eyes.

You have probably gathered by now that I belong to the generation known as 'X'. Apparently, our day in the sun is long gone. So far in the past, in fact, that the latest craze is for Gen X nostalgia.

Oh, dear. Someone pass me a Cosmopolitan, will you? I need to go and lie down.

What were the weird crazes when you were a child/teenager? What fad did you take part in that you'd rather forget? Is there anything you didn't do that you wish you had?

Going to the Greek....

2011-09-14T00:05:00.002-04:00

By Jeanne Adams

When I was growing up, among the many things I wanted to be was Greek.

Seriously.

I hear you laughing at my blond, very English/Scotch self, but I did.

Back then, my BFF was from a HUGE Greek-American family. She had this thick, gloriously black hair and sparkling black eyes, which I envied and although she only had one brother, she had a legion of incredibly handsome cousins and uncles and so on.

If I couldn't BE Greek, I wanted to grow up to marry one. Preferably her cousin, Anthony. (The picture there on the right bears a striking resemblance to the studly Anthony. Do you begin to see why I wanted to be Greek?)

I know that your imagination sometimes makes things bigger and more handsome than they might have been, but I found an old picture the other day (too faded to scan) and Anthony? Well, he's just as stunning as I remembered. Ha!

That family was like Nia Vardalos's characters in My Big Fat Greek Wedding in some ways. There was Saturday Greek school, and big picnics and festivals at the church, and lots and lots of baklava.

When my BFF's family, along with her long-widowed grandmother would go to Greece for a month in the summer I would look after her Grandmother's dog. The dog was a massive, enormous German Shepherd named Princess. Most of the neighborhood was terrified of this dog. She didn't care for most of the 'hood either, so the feeling was mutual.

For some reason however, Princess and I, we got along just fine.

It could be that I just loved her, or I was smitten with my paycheck: Mrs. G would give me $10 and bake me a whoooolllle tray of baklava in return for walking Princess twice a day, feeding her and so on throughout that month.

That baklava was astounding. I can still taste it - fresh and magnificent. It was the flaky kind, home-made, with the cloves piercing the top layer of phyllo dough, and cut into big, honey-dripping triangles. O. M. Gosh.
Sheer heaven.

And while I never learned to like stuffed grape leaves, I learned to like pretty much anything else food-related that had the word "Greek" attached to it. Soulvlaki. Moussaka. Greek salad.

So when it came to hero material, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that Davros Gianiakopulos popped into my consciousness fully formed - like Athena, patroness of Athens, sprang from the head of her father, Zeus. Grins.

Unlike the fabled Anthony of my childhood, Dav is dark-haired and dark-eyed. I kind of pictured him as built like a tall version of Vin Diesel, with John Stamos's coloring and wicked smile.

This is all very well, but hero's like the famed legends of old, need a weakness, something which shows their humanity, their vulnerability. Dav has that. Along with the ability to make pots and pots of money too.

Now the woman he loves, Carrie McCray, is pretty sharp herself. She's an entrepreneur, a gallery owner, and a sharp enough businesswoman to dig out of the financial hole (and PR nightmare) her late husband left her with in Deadly Little Secrets. Dav's had a thing for her for years, unrequited, of course, since she was married.

Now, as Deadly Little Lies comes to the shelves, Carrie is finally out from under the cloud her late-husband left, and free to make some new decisions.

Pretty cool, right?

Yep, as long as you don't get crosswise of Dav's enemies. Bwahahha!

So all this fun with Greeks, and Greece was like going back in my own personal history. I got to re-learn some long-forgotten words in Greek, as well as some new curse-words as well. Writing Dav was an absolute blast.

You see, it turns out one of my current BFF's is also Greek. You'll see that she's credited in the front of both Deadly Little Secrets and Deadly Little Lies, for her help.

Y'know, it must be some kind of homing beacon, or longing in my soul, because in every stage of my life, I've had a friend who was Greek. I like that.

Gus Portokalos, from My Big Fat Greek wedding would, I'm sure, attribute it to some long forgotten Greek Ancestor.

He'd probably also figure out some way that my name was a declension of a Greek noun, or related to a Greek word in some way.

Gus was right though. We owe a LOT to the Greeks. Warfare, sure, but art and music and democracy, a lot of broad-based theology, international commerce, olive oil, pine nuts, and marathons.

Hey, they gave us the Olympics; a chance every four years to oogle really, really fit, good looking people (men and women) wearing spandex. What's not to love?

Of course in ancient days they would have run that marathon nekkid, but now...you know, global warming, skin cancer...they go for spandex.

Not complaining. Really. I'm not. The oogling's still pretty good.

Every where you look, from architecture to fashion's strappy sandals and fold-filled-dresses, to the laurel leaves and torches on most of our money (in the USA), the Greeks have put their mark on even our distant-in-time-culture. Are you a Sorority sister? Fraternity guy? You're a Greek then, right? It's allll over us. Pretty darn cool.

Now you know the "secret" behind my darling Dav. He was the grown up version of my crush on the (probably long-since-gone-bald) gorgeous Anthony.

He's the technicolor fantasy version, complete with tuxedo and wicked, gleaming white smile.

One of the joys of being a writer is, I can bring him to life as hot and virile and freshly minted as that long ago crush.

See? Part of me still wants to be Greek.

I even had a gyro for lunch too.

So what about you? Is there a culture other than your own that you really, really love?

I have a friend that wanted to be Jewish because he thought the traditions were so incredibly cool and solid.

And in Eva Ibbottson's wonderful Countess Below Stairs (Remember that bit, Anna C?) one of the characters, the delightful Honorable Olive, wanted desperately to be a Russian.

Is there a country that calls to you, as if you once lived there, or might one day go and feel "at home"?

Joanie, I think you said you felt this way about Ireland when you went there, and I know my friend who's barely a 10th Irish felt so much that way when she stepped on Irish soil that she nearly didn't leave!

Or maybe the wildness of the Steppes calls to you, or the tropical forests of the Congo, or the mountains of Peru.

I'm not talking about the day-to-day living there, or the inconvenience of living in a different land, I'm wondering what culture and tradition calls to your soul.

Care to share?

(And DeDe P. if you're out there somewhere, thanks for being my friend. Grins.)

Bandit Booty!

2011-09-13T23:55:00.000-04:00

LATE Bandit Booty! So sorry to be late picking winners from my August 20th blog - I was deep in the writing cave finishing the first book of a new trilogy for Superromance. To make up for my oversight, I've picked TWO names to win copies of FEELS LIKE HOME.

Congratulations, Sonya and Cathy P!! Please send your snail mail info to me at: beth@bethandrews.net and I'll get your books out right away :-)

Here Kitty, Kitty

2011-09-13T00:05:00.004-04:00

by Cricket and Grayson

Cricket: Here kitty, kitty? That's a pretty brave thing to say cause really, in the cat world you never know what kind of response you'll get. Claws out or claws in or a smug dismissal....if the cat in question bothers to come out from their "secret place." Bawahahahaha...meow.

Our Mom Joanie left us alone with the computer and we saw her note about writing a blog. My little brother Grayson and I thought we'd help her out and do it for her, and in the process enlighten the world about what cool friends felines are.

I'm a beautiful gray tabby who loves to groom and talk to my Mom. I do it with chirps and trills and mews, rarely meows cause she understands me so well. We cats have over 100 different vocal sounds as opposed to canines who have 10....and most of them sound like "bark, bark" Grayson, on the other hand, chats a LOT.....and makes weird chuffing noises when he sees birds. The birds aren't impressed and give him snarky smiles on the other side of the window.

Grayson: (grumbles) They'd be impressed if they knew that noise was the same jaw motion I'd use if Mom would let me out.

Cricket: Yeah, yeah. I'm pretty laid back though I enjoy the curved perch best and discovering hiding places. Mom only recently figured out I have found a secret entrance to her box springs, tee hee. And wow, you should have seen her the day she found my under the cabinet lair. Thought her head would explode. She's a pretty good Mom so I came on out not realizing she'd seal off the cat cave entrance

Grayson: I don't know why you like to hide so much, when there is SO much to explore!!! Hi, Grayson here and yes, you got it. I'm PURE gray with bewitching green eyes...any of you lady cats out there interested? It would have to be a...ahem...platonic relationship cause...well...you know. (cringes)

Anyway, I'm the opposite of my sister. I leap and prowl and jump and stalk and spin and give Mom a run for her money. Ya should have seen her face the day she found me on top of the fridge, lol. And Christmas this year? She says she's gonna put ORNAMENTS on the tree this year. Hee hee, make my day Mom. Ya see, I'm pretty proud of all this cause I was the runt of the litter and they said I was slow to learn. Ha!

At night, I love nothing more than to snuggle on Mom especially on her chest. She gives great chin rubs and holds my paws and if she forgets, I reach one paw out to touch her arm. A gentle reminder that she is there for me. Occasionally, she thinks she can eat her snacks in her chair alone. Pfffft....yesterday I thwarted her, climbing up on her left side, wriggling in under her arm and FREEZING. She never knew I was there.

Cricket: (rolls eyes) I get my special time with her at the computer. I cuddle her while she types and yes, will take partial credit for her romance mss. It's no mistake that her newest story has a supernatural cat in it

As fantastic as we are, we also want to educate the general public with some trivia and vital information. Here is some of the info Mom found. And yes, the vital information does include tuna:

Did you know.....

* Cats have better memories than dogs? They remember "things" for up to 16 hours while a dog does for 5 min.

*Cats make over 100 vocal sounds and usually reserve ANY meows for their human subjects. They rarely do more than hiss at each other. Along those same lines, a cat's purr has the same number of revolutions as an idling diesel engine

*95% of cat owners talk to their cats. Well, sure..to say hello, here's some food, ugh is that a hairball? And the occasional "Are you my boy? Yes you are, (croons) there's my little girl, there's my Cricket"

Ahem.

*When cats run or walk they lead with both left legs then both right legs together. The only other animals to do this are the giraffe and the camel. (Grayson snickers)

*Some cats have a sixth and sometimes seventh toe on their paws. Ernest Hemingway had a clowder (a groups of cats) of polydactyl cats at his Key West home. (Cricket checks her paws frantically)

*Oldest cat ever recorded: "Puss" at age 36 in Devon, England. Heaviest cat: "Himmy" in Queensland, Aus at 46 lbs. And Dusty, the queen cat (what a breeding female is called) in Bonham, TX who, over the course of her life, gave birth to 420 kittens! Bet the catnip bill for THAT family reunion was enourmous!

*One serving of cat food, dry or wet, is equal to the protein of 5 mice. Um, Grayson..here...take this mint stick..please!

*While Abe Lincoln adored cats and had many in the White House, famous aelurophobics (fear of cats) included Julius Ceasar, Henry II and Napoleon. Do you think Waterloo could have been avoided if a brigade of cats had just been sent in first?

*Last, but not least owning cats (ok...ok...any pet) makes humans live longer, have less stress and decreased risk for heart attack. All well and good if you don't trip over the kitties standing in the doorway to welcome you home every night, worry they are sick if their whiskers droop and don't clutch your chest when you think they've gotten out and are in mortal danger of grass! Then yeah, I'll buy it.

Grayson: Oops, Mom's back. Guess we'll let her have the last word.

Actually, I wouldn't trade these two for all the scratching posts in the world. Yes, I've turned into one of those ladies who loves her kitties. They are loving, mischievious, they make me laugh, they cuddle with me and they are mine.

Cricket: We wouldn't trade you for all the treats in the world, either Mom!

Grayson: Not even Alaskan Salmon bites?

Cricket: (glares)

Grayson: Sis is right. She's the best Mom we've ever owned.

As the Lair is developing quite a clowder with my two, Anna S. Jersey and CC, Christie's Nicky and Maks and Donna's new little girl Suki, we thought we'd open it up to all strays. Tell me about your cats (pets). What makes them different, special? What type are they? What is the funniest thing your cat has ever done? LATE BREAKING NEWS: As this blog went to press, the prettiest, sweetest, 3 mo. old KITTEN showed up on our back deck. Poll: Will I part with it at the shelter or not?

Best-Laid Schemes Winners

2011-09-12T23:00:00.001-04:00

Thank you so much to everyone who kept the blog going on Saturday when I was off having a wonderful time at the Brisbane Writers Festival!

Just to let you know I've swung by and answered all the comments - what fun to hear about all your best-laid schemes going oft agley!

The two winners of their choice of my backlist are:

MARYBELLE

SONALI

Congratulations, girls! Please email me on anna @ annacampbell.info (no spaces) and let me know which book you'd like. If you need help to choose, please check out my books page: http://annacampbell.info/books.html

Ashley March's Winner!

2011-09-12T22:30:00.001-04:00

Thanks, everyone, for giving Ashley March such a wonderful welcome last week. She had a ball and asked me to express her appreciation.

The lucky winner of ROMANCING THE COUNTESS is:

LAURIE G!

Congratulations! Laurie, as you know, that means a lucky friend of yours wins a copy of SEDUCING THE DUCHESS. Wahoo! Could you please email Ashley on ashley @ ashleymarch.com (no spaces) and she'll organize your prizes for you.

Real friends help friends...babysit?

2011-09-12T00:49:00.003-04:00

by Cassondra Murray
With two very special guests

I’m just cleaning up the bar—the center for parties and activity in the lair—putting the last glasses away as the huge grandfather clock in the front room begins to chime. I’ve been burning the late-night oil the past few nights, coming up with a new signature cocktail for the lair.

Okay, truth. I’m stuck on my latest story and when I’m stuck, this is what I do. I clean. I decorate. I mix drinks. Anything but sit and stare at that blank page.

The clock finishes its chiming.

Midnight.

Well, almost midnight. The darn thing is always running ten minutes fast. I suppose I could fix that. Use up a little more of the time I’m NOT writing on my uncooperative story.

I go out to the oversized front foyer and stare up at the clock face, two feet higher than I can reach. Where’s one of Joanie's gladiators when you need one?

I turn to get a ladder when my phone bleeps with a text. Probably Jeanne in the writing caves, asking where the heck I am and why the heck I’m not down there, staring at my going-nowhere story and typing words. Can’t fix a blank page. I can just hear her saying it. *sigh* I won’t be able to hide forever. I pull the phone out of my pocket.

Not Jeanne. It’s Dianna Love.

Where r u? it reads.

In the lair. Goofing off. I type. Where r u? I hit send and head for the closet in the kitchen.

Bleeeeep. At the front door. Let us in.

What? Dianna is at the door to the lair—this late? She’s the one who gets up at 4:00 in the morning—about the time I’m usually heading to bed. And who is “us”?

I glance at the time on my phone to make sure I haven’t fallen through some time portal. Yup. Eight minutes to 12.

I lift the heavy bar, flip the big metal deadbolts and swing open the door to see Dianna on the front porch. “What's going on? Why didn’t you knock or ring the bell?”

“I didn’t want to wake up everybody else,” she says, glancing around with a nervous look. “Where are those gladiators?”

“Not to worry,” I say. “Ermingarde’s asleep.”

“What ith ermmy-gah?”

I look down toward the source of the gruff little voice. “Oh, hi Feenix!”

I can’t help but grin at the leathery little guy. Feenix is a two-foot-tall gargoyle with big yellow-orange eyes and EVL TOO printed on his shirt. His shirt says that because he belongs to someone who rides a GSX-R —or Jixxer, for short-- and has EVL ONE on her motorcycle tag. He grins back, showing off his two fangs. I explain, “Ermingarde is the lair’s dragon.”

“What ith dwagon?” This question also from Feenix.

Dianna breaks in as she steps over the lair’s threshold and Feenix follows, thumping along on his fat, four-toed feet. She tells him, “A dragon is something you don’t want to meet right now, Feenix.”

I glance at the grandfather clock, then at my phone again. Something is definitely off here. “Uh, Dianna, it’s almost midnight. You don’t do midnight.”

“No kidding, “she says. “But you do. That’s why I’m here. I need you to help me babysit¸ remember?”

I squint at Dianna as though she has three heads. “You’re serious? Now? First off, I don’t have a maternal bone in my body….and second…I thought last month when you mentioned babysitting Feenix, that it meant a couple of hours maybe. This afternoon...outside.”

“As if I inherited any mothering genes?” Dianna gives me a wry grin. “ I have fish and motorcycles. And yeah, I thought this would be day gig, too, but Evalle came over in a panic an hour ago. She was out taking Feenix for a ride near my house when she got a RED V 2 text and had to take off for VIPER headquarters. She had no time to take Feenix home, so she swung by my house, and reminded me that Feenix is my responsibility, too, sort of like a godparent I guess."

Evalle Kincaid is an Alterant—half Belador, half unknown. VIPER is a multinational coalition of all types of unusual beings and powerful entities created to protect the world from supernatural predators.

As one of the Belador warriors who support VIPER, Evalle works in the southeastern region—more specifically in Atlanta-- protecting humans. Dianna became fascinated by this secret group about seven years ago when she realized most humans don’t know they exist, and she decided to chronicle their activities. Since then, she teamed up with #1 NYT best selling author Sherrilyn Kenyon to co-write what is believed to be a fictitious series on the Beladors.

The first Belador novel, BLOOD TRINITY, came out in 2010 and debuted on the New York Times list. If only people knew the truth behind this series…

Then again… better that they think it’s fiction. Otherwise there could be widespread panic.

Evalle is one of three main characters in the series. The other two are Evalle’s best friends, Tzader Burke and Vladimir Quinn. All three keep Dianna and Sherrilyn busy documenting Belador activities.

The text Evalle received tonight—RED V 2— was a Code Red to drop whatever she was doing and go straight to VIPER headquarters in the north Georgia mountains, and that’s how Dianna—a definite daywalker—has ended up on a midnight ride all the way to the lair for babysitting help from an admitted vampire like me.

“Looks like we’ll be up for a bit,” I say as I turn down the lights in the front foyer. “A bunch of Bandits are down in the writing caves, on deadlines, so I bet Sven has coffee going in the kitchen.”

I ask Dianna, “what’s up with the VIPER team? Some kind of emergency?”

“Apparently there’s been an increase in demon activity in downtown Atlanta. Evalle couldn’t say much. Just that she wasn’t able to ask Tzader or Quinn to take Feenix home because they were called out, too.” Tzader is the North American Belador Maistir (translation – head Belador badass) and Quinn has a rare gift—he can mind lock--plus he’s the investment genius who oversees Belador finances.

I glance behind Dianna as I shut the door, to find her vermillion BMW F-650-GS motorcycle parked just at the bottom of the flight of steps leading to the front porch.
“You’re on the bike?”

“Yeah. Feenix rides all the time with Evalle, so I figured it would be easier and more familiar for him than riding in a car. And I thought this way I might actually keep my leather car upholstery intact.” She casts a look at the sharp claws on Feenix’s short fingers.

“What ith upothery?” Feenix blinks up at both of us, looking from one to the other. I grin as I shut the door and Dianna tries to describe a car seat to someone who has only recently learned how to count to ten. Evalle rescued Feenix from a demented sorcerer and the little guy is just learning to talk.

I turn back around just as a gladiator walks into the room on his regular midnight security patrol through the lair. He stops in his tracks, holding a silver-colored training shield at his side.

Feenix starts to flap his wings and dances from side to side on his pudgy little feet. “Peetha!”

Dianna takes one look at the gorgeous man and grabs Feenix’s four-fingered hand. “Ah, shoot. The shield,” she says. Feenix is stronger than he looks, and tugs Dianna forward, heading toward the metal-clad warrior, saying, “Peetha. Peetha. Peetha.”

“No, Feenix,” Dianna says, struggling to hold him back. “That’s not a pizza. You can’t eat the shield.”

“Bran,” I say, trying to keep my voice calm, “you and the other gladiators might want to lose the metal shields and armor just for tonight.” Bran frowns at me. “Oh, and if you could grab one of the other guys, y’all should hide that suit of armor at the door to the back hallway.” Bran’s frown deepens, and I explain. “Feenix loves anything silver…he eats metal. He thinks your shield is a silver pizza.”

Dianna is trying to distract Feenix when a streak of yellow feathers darts into the room. The rooster takes one look at Feenix and starts to flap and sqwawk.

Feenix beats his bat-like wings in the air wildly, lifting off the floor, and makes a honking cry sound. His eyes glow bright orange and smoke curls from his nose. Dianna tells him, “Calm down, Feenix. The Golden Rooster won’t hurt anyone. Promise.”

“That crazy rooster was at Jane’s place in New York until a few minutes ago,” Bran says. “I don't know how he got back in here without my knowing it.” Bran takes off up the curving staircase after the GR, and Feenix finally settles back to the floor, eyes rounded in worry. “Roother?”

“Yes,” Dianna soothes. “Nice rooster.”

Well, that “nice” part is debatable, but Feenix has managed to not blow fire out his nose and burn down the lair or make rooster crispies, so with the little gargoyle calmed down, we make our way to the kitchen. I can smell the coffee as soon as we open the door.

As we walk in, Sven is coming through the back with a small stainless steel bucket full of shiny, silver-colored lug nuts. He glances up, taking in Dianna and Feenix. “They’re here already?”

He sets the bucket on the table and grins at Feenix. It’s hard not to grin at Feenix if you’ve read BLOOD TRINITY, the first book in the Belador series, and I’d given Sven a copy last October when the book was released. Sven nudges the bucket forward. “I got him some treats.”

“Sven, this is why we love you,” I say. Sven tosses one of the lug nuts to me, but before I can catch it, Feenix leaps up, flapping, and snags it out of the air with his tongue.

“Yeah, but I had an ulterior motive,” Sven says, and runs his hand lovingly across the giant Viking commercial range—all silver-toned stainless steel. “My appliances are sacred. I also got him a bean bag chair.” Sven points toward the corner of the kitchen at an enormous, bright green bean bag.

“Wow,” I say. “That’s ugly.”

“Yeah,” Dianna says, “but Feenix will love it.” As if to prove her right, Feenix toddles over to the bean bag and pokes at it. Then he drags it across the room toward us.

“Nathcar,” he says.

“Coming right up,” Sven says, and reaches for the remote. He clicks the tv above the refrigerator to the appropriate channel. He obviously paid attention when he read BLOOD TRINITY.

“So,” I say, and raise one eyebrow at Dianna, “what does one do when one babysits?”

Dianna frowns at me. “Don’t ask me. I like to fish and ride motorcycles. You never babysat?”

“Twice,” I say. “In emergency situations like this one. I promised to keep them alive, and that’s what I did. I did not promise fun, and we didn’t have much. All my children have fur or feathers. I have no clue what to do with a ba—uh….a two-foot gargoyle”

“He seems to be doing just fine,” Sven says, and nods toward Feenix, who is happily cuddling his stuffed alligator, watching NASCAR® and sucking on the steel lug nut like a lifesaver candy. “Hey, Feenix, I thought you had an art contest going on. Got the finalists yet?”

Feenix looks at Sven, then around at Dianna, “Where’th my picthur?”

Dianna sighs. “I would have thought Evalle had explained this to him by now. The finalists will be announced on September 19th at www.MyFeenix.com.”

“That’s next week,” I explain, when Feenix looks confused. He makes a happy grunting noise and goes back to his NASCAR® show.

I pull up one of the old kitchen chairs around the heavy wooden table. Dianna chooses another chair as Sven sets out human snacks and pours coffee for himself and the two of us. Clearly, he recognizes two incompetent gargoyle-sitters when he sees them, and plans to stand guard over his beloved appliances. “Hey," I say to Dianna, "Why don’t you tell everybody how this has turned into The Year of Feenix?

“It really has,” Dianna says, and grabs a carrot stick from Sven’s tray. “And I wish I'd planned it, but it was all fate. I’d intended to draw Feenix last winter, then hit on the idea of the art contest, because of having been an artist before I started writing. We set it up so that high school and adult artists could create images of Feenix for prizes—money, art supplies, and books for the artists and for school art departments and libraries. And we scheduled the announcement of finalists for September 19th.”

Feenix makes happy sounds and flutters his leathery wings as the cars in the pre-recorded race scream around the track. Dianna keeps one eye on Feenix and smiles as she sips black coffee.

“But then the next book release got moved up, right?” I munch broccoli spears with Sven's homemade ranch dressing, and watch Sven refill cups and start another pot of coffee.

“Yeah,” Dianna continues around a bite of carrot. “ALTERANT, book 2 in the Belador series, was originally scheduled to be released in November, but Pocket (the publisher) changed the date. They set it for September 27, just two weeks after the My Feenix™ Art Contest Finalists are announced. And ALTERANT starts with Feenix—so that was a really cool kind of kharma we couldn’t have planned if we’d thought of it.”

“And,” I say as I point at Dianna with a piece of celery. “You’ve got a Belador story coming out as a free e-book in the next couple of days, right?”

“Right. This week, we’ll release the free story FIRE BOUND—and Feenix has a big role in that too.” Feenix looks over at Dianna and grins. “So this is definitely your year, isn’t it, Feenix?”

“Yeth, dammit!"

"Feenix!" Dianna and I say at the same time. Sven turns toward the sink and snorts back a laugh. Evalle accidentally cursed in front of Feenix just once, and he picked right up on it. She's been trying to undo that ever since.

Feenix blinks his yellow eyes and shifts around on his bean bag. "What ith year?” He flutters his wings and Dianna rolls her eyes.

“I’ll announce the release of the free story this week on my facebook page,” Dianna says. So everybody be watching for that. Also, you can check my website for the news, too. It’s www.AuthorDiannaLove.com. And, you can read an excerpt of ALTERANT there as well."

“Looks like we’ve got a long night ahead of us,” I say. “Sven, keep the coffee coming, and make it strong.”

Here's the blurb for ALTERANT.

In this explosive new world of betrayals and shaky alliances, the only Alterant not incarcerated faces an impossible task -- recapture three dangerous, escaped creatures before they slaughter more humans…or her.

The way Evalle Kincaid sees it, saving mankind from total destruction should have cleared her name. But when words uttered in the heat of combat are twisted against her, she's blamed for the prison break of three dangerous Alterants. She has one chance to clear the cloud of suspicion hanging over her…for good. All she has to do is recapture the escapees. But deals with gods and goddesses are tricky at best, and now the lives of all Beladors, and the safety of innocent humans, rides on Evalle's success. The only person she can ask for help wants to see her dead.

So, Bandits and Buddies….have you ever had to babysit?

A lot of you are moms and dads, but before that, what was your first experience caring for a little one?

Did you babysit for money, or was it your younger brothers and sisters you had to care for?

Are you like Dianna and me? Did you have to work at the whole “caregiver to kids” thing? Or did it come naturally to you?

We’re going to need lots of help tonight, cuz we’re both clueless about babysitting a two-foot-tall gargoyle who can fly and breathe fire. At least Sven has lots of treats on hand. So tell us, what would you do to entertain Feenix?
(And no, letting him barbecue the Golden Rooster is not an option.)

Give us your best babysitting tips and advice, for a chance at a free book Dianna will give away as her thanks to you for staying up with us and helping babysit Feenix.

Dianna is expecting her early copies of ALTERANT any day now. So she’ll give away a copy to one person who helps us out tonight and tomorrow.

Sven, your free copy is already set aside.

Pausing to Remember

2011-09-11T00:01:00.000-04:00

By Trish Milburn

History is filled with life-altering events both big and small. Sometimes those events are so big that they change the lives of everyone, not just those directly affected. When those things happen, people tend to remember where they were when they heard the news. Members of the Greatest Generation remember the attack on Pearl Harbor. People my parents’ age remember where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. I remember that I was at home from school for a snow day when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded.

But nothing holds the clarity of that morning ten years ago when we all suddenly realized that Sept. 11 would never be just another day on the calendar again.

I remember exactly where I was standing when I heard the news about the first plane hitting the World Trade Center’s North Tower. It was outside the office of a coworker at the magazine where I worked at the time. I hadn’t been at work long, less than an hour, and another coworker arrived at work and told us she’d just heard about the crash on the news in her car. We went to the TV thinking that this was a horrible accident. When the second plane hit the South Tower, the reality that this wasn’t an accident hit us. The day just got more horrible and surreal as the minutes passed. Flights were grounded nationwide, leaving an eerie silence in the skies. Less than an hour after the first plane crash, another hit the Pentagon. The shocking images of the towers actually collapsing. The crash of the fourth plane into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after the passengers revolted, and speculation it was heading toward Washington, D.C., perhaps the Capitol or the White House.

Throughout the day, we would wander back and forth between the conference room where the TV was located and our offices because we were on deadline for the magazine. After leaving for the day, I came home and watched TV for hours, in shock at the devastation and wondering what this would mean. Would there be more attacks? Were we going to go to war? Who was responsible? Was any place safe? Because we now live in a 24-hour TV news cycle, the coverage was endless. I watched the stories of rescues, of people looking for loved ones, of heroism and loss for days after Sept. 11. I can’t remember how many days later it was, but I finally had to turn off the TV. I couldn’t handle all the sadness anymore.

It’s been 10 years since that day, and it seems like maybe half that. Our way of life has been forever changed with increased security measures and what has been dubbed the War on Terror. I choose not to focus on those aspects overmuch though because they cause too much anxiety and sadness.

Instead, as the stories about the 10th anniversary have been written and broadcast, I find hope in the stories of how survivors changed their lives after 9/11. One man was a stock trader (or investment banker, I can’t remember) on 9/11, but in the aftermath he started taking tango classes. Here he met a woman and fell in love. Now they travel the world teaching the tango. Another man, who lost his wife and unborn child aboard one of the hijacked planes, worked hard to have a maternity wing built and named after his wife at the hospital where their child would have been born. While these stories were born of great sadness, they also speak to the tremendous resilience of the human spirit, our innate need to go on and to find something good amidst so much sorrow.

In the days after the attacks, there was a tremendous swell of people helping each other, even people they didn’t know. First responders from all over the country flocked to New York to help the FDNY, NYPD and Port Authority, who’d lost so many of their fellow firefighters and police officers. People on the streets aided each other any way they could. Blood banks across the country saw huge numbers of donors show up. Support for first responders, real heroes, skyrocketed. It was a national tragedy that brought out inspiring amounts of kindness. That’s the part I like to focus on. And I think that outpouring of kindness is part of what we shouldn’t forget and what we should try to emulate every day, whether it’s the anniversary of 9/11 or the most ordinary of days.

Best Laid Schemes...

2011-09-10T00:02:00.005-04:00

by Anna Campbell

Welcome to the launch of...

What's that you say?

NO LAUNCH????

Guys, so very, very sorry but we were meant to have one of the infamous lair launches today (in fact people have started calling the Banditas the ladies who launch).

We had the cabana boys on standby. Extra margaritas. Deck chairs lined up with Sven on duty for massages. We'll just have to have a party anyway!

Sadly, publication of THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF GHOST ROMANCE which I was so looking forward to introducing today has been delayed until late next year. You'll all have to wait to meet Calista and Miles and Isabella and Josiah. Goodness me, they'll have to wait for their happy endings too which is MUCH harder on them, I'm sure!

I was all geared up to tell the world about "The Chinese Bed", my story in the anthology, including a contest on my website (thank you to the people who have entered - you're already automatically entered in the replacement contest where I'm giving five people their choice from my backlist).

Do you know where the quote "the best-laid schemes" comes from? It's a poem by Robbie Burns called To a Mouse, on Turning Her up in her Nest with a Plough:

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
In proving foresight may be vain;
The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men
Gang aft agley,
An 'lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!

Hmm, not sure if the cabana boys count as mice or men - Paolo looks scared most of the time. And after a few margaritas, I'll feel neither grief nor pain!

Hic!

Actually I think the mouse in the poem has come along to offer her condolences. Either that or Ermingarde hasn't been undertaking her rat-catching duties the way she's supposed to. Sheesh, you can't get good help these days!

I had originally planned on doing a giveaway of the anthology here today (another best-laid scheme that went agley). But hey, why should you suffer? Two commenters today will win their choice from my backlist (which explains the covers illustrating the blog). If you're not sure which book you'd like, please check out my books page on my website: http://annacampbell.info/books.html

Just tell me about a best-laid scheme of yours that went astray and you'll go in the draw.

Speaking of best-laid schemes, I'm away at the Brisbane Writers Festival this weekend so I may only be around sporadically (no, not because I'm drowning my sorrows in a barrel of margaritas or a barrel of cabana boys - you guys have SUCH naughty imaginations!). But I WILL get back, promise!

Now, where did that mouse get to?

Romancing Ashley March!

2011-09-09T00:02:00.010-04:00

by Anna Campbell

I've got a treat for you all today, including two wonderful prizes for you and a friend at the end.

Ashley March is one of a bunch of wonderful new historical romance writers who have hit us over the last few years. Booklist singled Ashley out as a rising star of historical romance and praised her 2010 debut SEDUCING THE DUCHESS:

"With its addictive combination of richly nuanced characters, elegant writing spiced with a soupçon of wicked wit, and abundance of sizzling sexual chemistry, March's exceptional debut is literary gold."
Ashley's second book ROMANCING THE COUNTESS came out 6th September and is already garnering widespread praise.

Here's the blurb for ROMANCING THE COUNTESS:

Sebastian Madinger, the Earl of Wriothesly, thought he'd married the perfect woman-until a fatal accident revealed her betrayal with his best friend. After their deaths, Sebastian is determined to avoid a scandal for the sake of his son. But his best friend's widow is just as determined to cast her mourning veil aside by hosting a party that will surely destroy both their reputations and expose all of his carefully kept secrets... Leah George has carried the painful knowledge of her husband's affair for almost a year. All she wants now is to enjoy her independence and make a new life for herself-even if that means being ostracized by the Society whose rules she was raised to obey. Now that the rumors are flying, there's only one thing left for Sebastian to do: silence the scandal by enticing the improper widow into becoming a proper wife. But when it comes to matters of the heart, neither Sebastian nor Leah is prepared for the passion they discover in each other's arms....
You can find out more about Ashley and her books and read excerpts on her website: www.ashleymarch.com

Ashley, congratulations on the release of your second historical romance ROMANCING THE COUNTESS. Can you tell us about this story?

Thank you, Anna, and thank you so much for hosting me today here at The Romance Bandits! You guys always know how to have fun. ;) ROMANCING THE COUNTESS is about an earl and his best friend’s wife who are drawn together after their spouses—who were having an affair—die in a carriage accident. The heroine Leah, who knew of the affair and kept it secret for a year, is ready to move on with her life. However, Sebastian, the Earl of Wriothesly, is shocked to discover the betrayal of both the wife he loved dearly and the best friend he considered closer than his own brother. Yet when Leah begins to engage in reckless behaviour, Sebastian has to get past his grief and anger to keep her from revealing the affair to all of Society in order to protect his son.
Goodness me, you’ve been busy! We have two novellas to talk about as well as ROMANCING THE COUNTESS. Firstly, can you please tell us about ROMANCING LADY CECILY and how it relates to your other historical romances?

I’m hoping to become busier. ;) ROMANCING LADY CECILY actually serves as a sort of prequel to ROMANCING THE COUNTESS. In RtC, the hero’s dead wife’s name is Angela. ROMANCING LADY CECILY is the story of Angela’s best friend, Lady Cecily. RLC is an e-short of about 15,000 words and has its own HEA with Lady Cecily and her hero.

Sounds great. I also notice you have a contemporary novella coming out in November in an anthology with Bernadette Marie and Tiffany James. Can you please tell us about this story and also how it felt to leave the Victorian era and dabble in the 21st century?

Oh, thanks so much for asking! This will be my first contemporary work, so I’m very excited to see how readers respond to this different style and voice. Each of the novellas in the SWEET TALK ME anthology feature a heroine that works in an occupation related to food—and actually, they work specifically with desserts, hence the title. My novella in the anthology, titled ‘Forbidden Desserts’, is about a former ballerina turned pastry chef and the engaged owner of the restaurant who doesn’t want to face his attraction to her.

I had a lot of fun writing this contemporary novella. I tend to write emotional and sometimes angsty historical romances, so the lighter contemporary allowed me to experiment with a different type of voice. Depending on the success of the anthology and the feedback I receive, I have plans to write a series of full-length contemporaries in addition to my historicals soon. *crosses fingers*

What’s next for Ashley March?

This week (on September 6th) I just started a fun new reader-interactive experiment where readers get to help me write a novella on my website at www.ashleymarch.com! Over the next 10 weeks, readers will vote on how the chapter for the next week develops, and will get to read the chapter based upon their vote after I write it. At the end of the experiment (which hopefully readers will find as much fun as I believe it will be!), I plan to edit the novella and self-publish it. The idea behind this is a preface to a new project of mine I plan to start in 2012 called Romance with Heart, which I’m calling right now a reader-interactive romance charity adventure.

Ooh, sounds intriguing. Can you tell us about your writing journey?

Oh, boy. I’ll give you the short (or somewhat short) version. After finishing my first romance in 2006 and realizing it was truly horrific, I gave up the idea of writing and resigned myself to working a 9-to-5 for the rest of my life. Then in 2008, after reading a wonderful romance written by someone else I was inspired to try again. I finished my second manuscript that year, then completed my third manuscript, which later became SEDUCING THE DUCHESS, my debut, in 2009. I sold SD in a three-book contract to NAL Penguin in December 2009 and SD was published as my first book in October 2010. I have been very, very fortunate.

I know you have two young children. How do you fit your writing around your family commitments? Any hints for time management?

I used to work full-time, but fortunately I’m now able to be a SAHM, which has always been a dream of mine. Funnily enough, I find I have less time to write now than when I was working (as I could write during my lunch break, etc.) Right now I mostly write in the evenings after the girls have gone to bed—usually from 7 or 8—and stay up to somewhere between 12am or 2. If I didn’t love what I do so much, not just the writing but also interacting with readers, I honestly don’t think I’d be able to do this day in and day out. I love sleep. Unfortunately, I don’t have any hints for time management. I’m trying to figure out a way to inject enough caffeine into my veins directly so I NEVER have to sleep. ;)

Ashley, do you have anything to ask the Banditas and Bandita Buddies?

As you can see, I obviously need help with time management, especially with two young children in the house (mine are currently 27mo and 10mo). What tips would you give for either making the most of your free time or, if you’re already as bad at it as I am, figuring out how to stay awake longer?

One random commenter will be chosen to win a copy of my newest book, ROMANCING THE COUNTESS, and will get a chance to send a copy of my debut, SEDUCING THE DUCHESS, to a friend (open internationally, of course)! Also, find out how to win the ROMANCING THE COUNTESS Book Tour Grand Prize of 50+ romance novels by visiting www.ashleymarch.com!

Oh, I love this phone a friend contest. How cool is this? Spreading the good oil is always, uh...GOOD. (Hmm, maybe I should become a writer. I clearly have a gift for description.) Get commenting, people, and good luck!

Color Me Creative

2011-09-07T21:47:00.006-04:00

by Tawny

I love color. Color and paint and texture and visual bursts of excitement. My living room, hall and dining room are warm tan with an orange wash, and on one wall of the dining room I added magenta and purple to the wash so it looks like sunset.

My family room is shades of sage, with the lower walls ragged with dark green and the upper walls a paler hue. My office is purple, my youngest daughters room pink stripes with multi-colored polka dots. The kitchen is sunflower yellow with royal blue accents. Yep, I love color!

I love color so much, I can't live without it. When we bought our new house, the first thing I did after putting away the packing boxes was haul out the paint roller. I had those rooms I already mentioned painted before all our mail was forwarded!! I did make plans for the other rooms paint (red in the hall, periwinkle and teal in the girls' bathroom, yellow in my bedroom and a dove gray with just a hint of lavender in the powder room) but put those off until after my next book deadline. Which quickly turned into another, then another deadline. So those rooms are missing their paint-- but have the promise of what colors they will be!

But this month, with my oldest daughter moving out (pause to sob copiously) I was faced with the challenge of choosing colors for yet another room. First I had to decide what the purpose of the room would be (different colors have different vibes). I knew it'd be a guest room for when the grandparents (and any writing buddies- c'mon over!) come to visit. I knew I'd be moving the elliptical and exercise equipment in there. And while I debated it for months, I finally decided that I'd also move my scrapbook stuff out of my office and into there. Mostly because I moved the homeschool stuff into my office, and it just isn't big enough to serve three purposes.

So the theme of the room is relaxation and energy (nice, huh) and creativity. I wanted it to be welcoming and fun, but still have a soothing overtone. It was, while it was my daughter's, tan with red stripes of varying widths. Since I had the scrapbook theme in mind, I turned to scrapbook paper for my inspiration! I'm going with shades of blue, a hint of teal, a dash of lime and a nice chocolate to balance it all out.

A few years ago, I blogged about color and how much I love it, vs people like my brother who lives in all white with black furnishings and accessories (right down to his photos being black and white). So as I revisit the joy of paint - I'm curious.

What's your take on color? Are your rooms colorful or mellow? If you could, what color would you paint your next room? Do you let mood affect your choice or do you pick a color and run with it?