Remember this?

Well, apparently I was not the only one struck by the beauty of these spiders’ silk–look at what’s being exhibited right now at the American Museum of Natural History:

Go on, read more about this amazing, amazing textile–and if you are near New York any time soon, go see it in person!

(Thanks to Dances with Wools for the heads up)

Over on Paz Edward’s blog, she has a list of the qualities for her perfect man:

1.Is kind-hearted to animals.
2.Is caring of others.
3.Is giving.
4.Is thoughtful.
5.Is not afraid to cry.
6.Is not afraid to laugh.
7.Has a great laugh that makes me laugh along or at least smile.
8.Notices the things I like.
9.Notices the things I don’t like.
10.Knows how to paint my toe nails. (more…)

When a man makes a point of telling you, “I am the most intelligent man/person you’ll ever meet,” he may or may not be right about his intelligence; but the fact that he felt compelled to point it out rather than simply being (show,  not tell) says volumes more about his character than his self-proclaimed brilliance.

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

This observation may seem a tad sexist, but it’s based on the fact that in 44 years I’ve yet to hear a woman say this, while I’ve met my share of men who have.

Lisa Stansfield, I salute you.

So I actually looked at my Google Reader yesterday and caught up on the happenings in RomLand.

Firstly, I discovered that SuperWendy has moved, so I updated my links accordingly.

I also caught the whole AAR Vs Blogs lovefest. Man, some of those AAR peeps sure got their knickers in a twist. I did love all the frothing at the mouth though, especially from that Xina bird.

Here’s an ‘interesting’ comment from Xina herself: (more…)

Am I the only person who finds romance novels where the heroine and the hero are already married to each other mind-numbingly boring?

I’m not talking about H&Hs who get married early on in the book either, I mean the ones that when you open up the first page, they’re already married, and probably having marital problems.

(more…)

Why do the heroines and heroes always have to resolve any familial issues before they can have their HEA? Seriously.

And those stories where the heroine has Daddy Issues and can’t find happiness with her hero until they’re resolved? Very effing annoying.

I’d love it if an author just let the heroine come to terms with her familial issues without having to have a big emotional scene, whereby she’s then able to finally have sex with her hero.

Is that too much to ask for?

Really?

Erm, this post really isn’t about inspirationals, so all the peeps looking for a cheap thrill may want to surf elsewhere. *g*

Anyway, one of my favourite biblical films of all times has always been Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments. Mostly because Charlton Heston as a young Moses was hot, but also because of the many themes that are oh-so-familiar in the romance genre.

Let’s see, you have the unquestionably heroic lead, his Mary Jane virgin, a secret baby, the spurned seductress, and the over-the-top bad guy. The HEA might have left a lot to be desired, but for the love of God, the guy was old, he was bound to die at some point.

If you had to choose any story from the bible to recreate in a romance, which story would it be?
(more…)

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer and I don’t play one anywhere.

What I am is, having a lot of trouble parsing the new FTC guidelines–how exactly does it affect people like me, who review books online?

Jane at DA fears it will make bloggers vulnerable to petty and malicious attacks–and given what we have seen about how the regulations set in place for the protection of children (i.e., the Michigan case, my neighbors in Florida) are abused by grumpy neighbors, I don’t think it’s a stretch that bloggers who believe every other person who disagrees with them, hates them*, or that bloggers who rejoice over other bloggers’ personal hardships**, would indeed gleefully abuse the new guidelines in order to make life difficult for people like the gals at DA or Karen.

(Yes, it’s a long sentence, deal) (more…)

I came across this glowing review of LB Gregg’s book over at Smexy Books, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I could trust it.

The cynic in me couldn’t help but wonder if Mandi had really loved the book as much as she said she had. What? I’m just being honest.

Listen, maybe the book was the best thing since sliced bread, but you must admit, if you know that a reader-blogger is friendly with a blogger-turned-author, it does make you wonder doesn’t it?

Here is the setup:

An acquaintance organized an event recently, hosting it at her house. With a few weeks to go, she invited about 40 people, more than half of which accepted the invitation. Then she spent the full week before the event working like a fiend–from cleaning her house from top to bottom, to buying groceries and cooking for at least twenty people.

Only four people showed up.

And I’ve been wondering… is it a cultural thing?

An education thing?

A generational thing?

I mean, to say, “Yeah, of course, I’ll be there” and then not only not showing up, but not even calling to excuse oneself?

I know my mother would have flayed me alive had I done such a thing. Then again, it’s also customary in my family that if someone doesn’t show up after promising to be there, phone calls ensue–it’s a given that if there was no apology/excuse before hand, something dire must have had happened.

What say you?