Up to the end of September, there are ARCs of Hunter’s Need , Ms Walker’s December release in the Hunters series, up for grabs over at her blog!

A few lucky people will get a signed ARC and find out what happens between Ana and Duke (remember them? We met them in Hunting the Hunter), well before the release date.

Perfect for taunting fans of the series, wouldn’t you say? And getting your name in the drawing couldn’t be easier!

Here are the basic highlights on how to enter the giveaway:

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Gaudy Night, by Dorothy L. Sayers

The tenth in Ms Sayers’ Lord Peter Wimsey novels, Gaudy Night is the third and most crucial book in the Harriet Vane story arc; it is also the first to be told entirely from Harriet’s point of view. Both this and the almost claustrophobic setting allow the reader insights into both her character and Peter’s that have only been glimpsed in previous books.

I feel that it must be noted that, while there is a quote on the cover from The Los Angeles Times touting Ms Sayers as “One of the greatest mystery story writers of this century”, it is not the mystery side of her writing that makes her novels—and Gaudy Night in particular—so incredibly appealing and so wonderful to re-read.

No, it’s not the mystery; it’s her incredibly deft use of the English language—her dialogue, her descriptions, her literary references—and how she makes these people come vividly alive on the page. (more…)

After two weeks, I’m finally putting down my impressions from the insanity that is a book signing involving more than a couple hundred authors, and ten times as many fans¹. As I mentioned before, the energy in that ballroom (conference room? whatever it was) was extraordinary.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me backtrack a little.

Ann Aguirre picked me up early on Saturday, so that we would have some time for breakfast before she had to start setting up for the signing. We had met face to face, for the first time after over a year of emailing and chatting, only that Tuesday. Let me tell you that Ann is a very funny person, as well as very down to earth. Hell, she made us dinner and everything!

(Yes, epic failure of my hostess skills-don’t tell my mother, please)

Anyway, Ann had to be inside the… well, the ginormous room for quite a while before, first, the convention attendees, and then the general public could enter, so I waited in line for a while. What does one do when standing around without a book (really, it would have been a bit like bringing a lump of coal to a mine, you know), but people watch? And so I did. (more…)

Embraced by Love, by Suzanne Brockmann

(I am in a Suzanne Brockmann kick, have you noticed? Well, what’s a woman to do, when she has written so many of my favorites?)

Embraced by Love is Ms Brockmann’s third published novel, originally released by the now defunct Pinnacle in 1995 and reissued by Ballantine just shy of its ten year anniversary. It is a good thing it was reissued, because for a while it was impossible to find a copy to read. Anyway, I got my s.o. his very own copy, we read it, and here’s our joint review.

But first, the blurb in the reissued version:

Josie and Cooper were one of those couples everyone envied: gorgeous, successful, and so deeply devoted. Even though Josie tended to work too hard, putting in long hours to lift her fledgling company off the ground, and Cooper could be wild and unpredictable, the two complemented each other. It seemed their love would last forever.

But sometimes love just isn’t enough. When a tragic accident leaves Josie and Cooper with two young children to care for, their bond will be tested. Now the pressures of their commanding careers are compounded by the needs of the children, and they find themselves drifting further apart. They will have to work to find the way back to each other, to the incredible passion that was once at the center of their lives—and still burns deep in their hearts…

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Please note, I’m going to try to keep this message up here for a while, so for new posts, please look below.

Sharon Cullars, the author of Again and The Object of Love needs our help. Since losing her job, she has been unable to find another. As a result, Sharon is about to lose her home to foreclosure.

Any donation you can make to help out will be greatly appreciated. You can make a contribution via PayPal by stopping at CHIP IN: SHARON CULLARS.

If you’re not familiar with Sharon and would like to learn more about her and her work, you can visit her web site (Sharon Cullars) and blog (Sharon’s Muse).

It would be great if you guys could help spread the word, so please feel free to copy and paste this info onto your blog.

(If the widget doesn’t work, just click on the Chip In link)

Thanks muchly.

From Paz Edwards’ blog.

Lord and Master, by Jules Jones

Back in July, I read and enjoyed Ms Jones’ short story “Black Leather Rose” and ever since have had a hankering for more of her writing. Very kindly, she sent me review copies of both Lord and Master and its sequel, Lord and Master 2, and even though it’s been a few months (me, ssssllllloooooowwwwww) she’s been extremely patient with me. A few days ago I was finally able to sink into Lord and Master and oh man! what a treat it was!

Published by Loose Id as an erotic romance, it has the following publisher’s note: “Lord and Master is a homoerotic love story. As such it depicts sexual content that may be objectionable to some readers: male/male sexual practices.” It also has explicit language and is pure contemporary romance (which should delight the peeps at Smart Bitches and Dear Author *said innocently*).

Here’s the (yay, good!!!) blurb:

When Mark’s PhD supervisor sent him for a job interview with an old university friend, he didn’t mention that the friend was devastatingly handsome. He also neglected to mention to either that the other is gay.

Steven was just looking for a young scientist to train as a PA to help him run his technology company. No extra services required. But watching other people react to a young, pretty man playing secretary to an openly gay CEO amused them both. Watching people wonder if they were having an affair was an entertaining game.

But when the game became real and caught them both up, Mark was left wondering… how real? Because he’s the one PA in the building who can’t marry the boss.

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Talking with the Dead, by Shiloh Walker

Originally published by Samhain in November 2006, this novella length story by Ms Walker caught my eye recently when it was reviewed by the inimitable SBSarah here. Eagle eye readers will notice quickly that she gave Talking with the Dead a C-.

If you are familiar with the most irreverent Smart Bitches who love Trashy Books, you understand immediately why I would be moved to search for and read a story with such a grade. If you are not familiar with them… where have you been? Nevermind. Hie thee over to their blog posthaste, and edumacate yourself. (If you are truly pressed for time, you can see Ms Walker’s reaction to the grade here) (more…)

Prize will be:

• ARC of FRAGILE, my 2/09 release (this will not be mailed until January)
• Gift Certificate for $40 to the bookstore of your choice (as long as I can purchase the GC certificate online, you can pick whatever bookstore you want)
• Two books from my available backlist
• Goody bag. (more…)

Guilty Needs, by Shiloh Walker

Should I admit upfront that I’m a fan of Ms Walker’s? Well, I am. And I think her writing gets better with each book.

At 150 pages, Guilty Needs is a longish novella rather than a full novel and despite its (lack of) length, it manages to be a very engaging read. How engaging, you ask? Well… My eyes are burning and I’m awake in the middle of the night after having read it in one sitting. One. At the stupid desktop. (Yes, I know I need a better way to read e-books, thank you.)

The usual warning: this erotic romance has graphic language and sexual content. If you are a minor, or bothered by either of the above, do yourself a favor and don’t read on. Thank you. (more…)

We all love drama. The more convoluted, drawn out, ridiculous it is, the more we love it.

Some of us love it behind closed doors—or in the case of these here intrawebz, by lurking quietly in the background. And some of us have to be on hand wherever pieces of the wreckage happen to fall. The majority of us, like any good normal distribution, fall somewhere in between these extremes. And more power to us, really.

But occasionally, even the most stalwart among us get a tad fed up with all the screeching of “mean girlz” and the batshit crazy, so today I would like to list some of the amazingly cool people I’ve met around blogland this year. I say some because I’m liable to forget one or more (please do forgive me if your name isn’t mentioned—I’m having a CRS* day) (Perhaps I shouldn’t write this now…) (But then, there’s no guarantee I’ll ever get over the CRS*) (more…)