Review: Crossroads - Moira Rogers + guestblogging

Series: Southern Arcana #2
Genre: Paranormal romance
Pages:  228 (ebook)
Published: 2010
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Source: For review

Coming from a family with psychic gifts, Derek Gabriel was aware of but separate from the dangers of the supernatural world, until a rogue wolf shifter stripped away his humanity. The change he barely survived didn’t drive him insane, but the cultural bias against him as an inferior transformed wolf might. And it doesn’t help that he’s fallen for the daughter of the most powerful wolf in the country.

Almost from the moment she was born, Nicole Peyton started planning her escape from the strict confines of elite shapeshifter society, an old-fashioned world where women are valued only for their bloodlines and bank accounts. In New Orleans she has a bar she loves, friends in decidedly low places, and a smoldering sensual tension with an incredibly attractive and deliciously unsuitable man. Their forbidden longing erupts into unbridled need—until Nick’s sister burns into town with a strike team hard on her heels. Saving her means Nick has to play by the Conclave’s rules…and give up the man she is growing to love. Unless Derek does something completely crazy—issue a challenge that could shake the foundations of their world.

My thoughts:

I really should write reviews at once, this time I waited three days and that is not good. But I hope I can do the book justice anyway.

In this book we get more of the politics and honestly those shifter bosses are such asses. But then men in power (and women) tend to be that. I liked Nicole, the heroine because she wanted out of that stuffy old world who only wanted her to choose a mate from one of their own sons. But she does have a weakness and that is love, her sister and just doing what she feels is right. Still who could not admire her.

The hero Derek, was turned shifter so to the bluebloods he is just a mutt. And he has liked Nick for a long long time. He is all a man should be, nice, protective of his loved ones, and hot. Together these two will create a little bit of magic of their own.

Even if I do like the big romance, there is so much more to like too. All the side characters are just love, like Kit and Andrew who sure flirt a lot with each other, and Alec, oh he sure won me over in this book and I really want to read his book. He is so alpha and mysterious. When he is near I forget everyone else, yes, awesome side character.

Back to the story. So much will happen. I wish I could tell you all, but that would sure spoil things. But prepare for surprises, heartache and victory.

The world is rich and with lots to explore. The bad guys are bad, but still normal. The passion is great, the friendships wonderful and it was a joy to read.

Conclusion:
I do think I liked this one more than book 1, or is that just because I am in some sort of I want Alec’s book haze? Lol, well book 1 was good and this one is even better then. I do hope the trend continue.

Rating:
Good

Cover:
Nice 

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And yes I am somewhere today too. Anachronist invited me to come to her blog Books as portable pieces of thought and talk about chick-lit, and yes romance for women in general. She has her essay, I have my thoughts and there is also a piece from Melissa from Books and Things. So come on over and check it out

here :D

Lol, I was looking at a fun pic to go with my notice and found this 

Interview and Giveaway: Mary Ellen Dennis - The Greatest Love on Earth

Today I have Mary Ellen Dennis over for an interview and at the end of it there is a giveaway where you can win her new book, The Greatest love on earth.

Welcome to Mur-y-Castell!

 Tell us something about yourself, so we can get to know you better…
MED: I acted and sang professionally. I was a journalist and wrote various columns under different names. I once reviewed myself in a play (I was very good!). I worked as a lecturer for Weight Watchers and one night, watching my members weigh in, I thought: “What if a maniac was killing off dieters when they reached their goal weight? What if people were eating as if their very lives depended on it?” It took 12 rewrites before a publisher offered me a two-book contract for Throw Darts at a Cheesecake and Beat Up a Cookie (written under the name Denise Dietz), starring diet club leader Ellie Bernstein. Having learned my craft, I began writing romance (my first love). But my romances always have a bit of a mystery and my mysteries are romantic.

Your latest release is called The Greatest Love on Earth; can you tell us what it is about?
MED: Calliope Kelley, star equestrian, has always wanted to be a lady, or, as she calls a lady, a “Mary.” When her circus is torched by a mysterious evildoer, Calliope manages to save the 7-year-old granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stanhope. She is told that her fiancé, cat tamer Brian O’Connor, was trampled and killed during the fire, so she assumes a new identity: Mary O’Connor. As a ward of the affluent Stanhopes, she becomes engaged to their son, the charismatic black sheep of the family. But she soon discovers the brutality—and vindictiveness—that lurks behind his handsome façade. She is trapped by a deceit of her own making, until she is rescued by Bret Johnson, a.k.a. Jocko the clown, a circus attraction from her past. Bret now owns a gambling establishment, the Cirque de Delices, and has always been in love with Calliope. Unfortunately, Calliope is certain that Bret, as Jocko, was the “evil leprechaun” who torched her circus. Despite that assertion, she agrees to play Cirque Hostess and chair the poker games. Then Brian O’Connor reappears. . .

Also out this month is a reissue of The Landlord’s Black-Eyed Daughter. Can you tell us a little bit about that one as well?
MED: The story is based on Alfred Noyes’s poem, The Highwayman but with a happier ending. Publishers Weekly wrote: “Feisty author Elizabeth "Bess" Wyndham is inexplicably attracted to highwayman John Randolph Remington. From the moment he picks up one of Elizabeth's books, Rand is haunted by the story's uncanny similarity to his disturbing recurring dreams.” Unraveling the mystique of those dreams is a recurring theme, and it leads to the possible betrayal of Rand, by Bess, during the novel’s exciting climax. My favorite scene is Bess and Rand’s escape from Newgate Prison.

How did you come up with the idea about writing about a circus?        
MED: My dad knew Emmett Kelley, one of the most famous clowns in history. Emmett would appear with a broom and dustpan, smack-dab in the middle of a huge spotlight. He'd step outside the spotlight and start sweeping it into a smaller circle. Then, smaller. When the spotlight was no bigger than a dinner plate, he'd sweep it into his dustpan. To me, a little kid, it was magic! My heroine, Calliope Kelley, is named for Emmett Kelley.

The seed for my circus theme was planted when I researched my generational saga, Heaven's Thunder, and learned that the circus had visited Colorado in the early 1900s. A big circus. With elephants! And what was then called a cameleopard (giraffe). Curiosity piqued, I ferreted out background data, read dozens of books. Although no one circus is the basis for The Greatest Love on Earth, P.T. Barnum's comes close.

Did you have to do a lot of research for this book?
MED: Yes, but I was lucky. I found a terrific book that included circus dialect. I learned that members of the audience were called “gillys” and a wee piggy danced a figure eight to the song “Root, Hog or Die.” Here’s a funny research story. I set a scene in a woodsy area. The scene included a hand-built merry-go-round. It was a love scene, and in my mind I pictured the horses going up and down, up and down, up and…problem was, I didn’t know what kind of music an 1875 merry-go-round would use. Since I always double-check Internet research, I called my local research librarian, who told me that musicians played instruments (think: Mary Poppins’ Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious), which wouldn’t work for my love scene, of course. But even more devastating, I discovered that an 1875 merry-go-round horse didn’t go up and down. So I had to build a gazebo :-)

 If you were a part of a circus, what would your role be?
MED: A bareback rider. I love horses. I attended grad school in Las Cruces, New Mexico. I lived in a little house near a pecan grove and I’d ride my horse, Arapaho, bareback.

Could you tell us a little about some of other books you have written?
MED: My diet club series is very popular, but I hit the bestseller lists with Footprints in the Butter – an Ingrid Beaumont Mystery costarring Hitchcock the Dog – now available as a full-cast “romantic mystery” audio book (www.SirenAudioStudios.com). “Footprints” was written by my alter-ego, Denise Dietz. The hardcover edition of The Landlord’s Black-Eyed Daughter received starred reviews and went into 4 printings, and I’m extremely grateful to Sourcebooks (www.sourcebooks.com/author/mary-ellen-dennis.html) for making it available in paperback. All of my books, including my ebooks, are at my website (www.denisedietz.com), and most include excerpts.

I always ask this at the end: any advice for aspiring writers?
MED: First, aspiring authors should remember that the name of the game is emotions. If the sad bits don’t make you shed a tear, you’ve likely done it wrong. If the sexy bits don’t turn you on, they likely will fail to do it for your reader. You need believable characters in believable situations, with REAL emotions your readers can share. Second, never give up. Because: ”If you drop a dream, it breaks!”

Thanks!

GIVEAWAY

2 copies of The Greatest Love on Earth up for grabs

1. US and Canada

2. Ends August 25th

3. You know the drill, just enter, or if you want to ask Mary Ellen a question.

Or perhaps tell me what you would do if you were part of a circus.

The Greatest Love on Earth - Out Now from Sourcebooks

Set in the exotic world of a 19th century circus, Dream Dancer sweeps readers into deathdefying feats, dangerous rivalries, and a love that has all the thrills and romance of the greatest show on earth.

Bold, beautiful star equestrian Calliope Kelley has two passions in life: her father's circus and daredevil animal tamer Brian O'Connor. When the circus is destroyed by fire and Brian disappears, Calliope changes her name and becomes engaged to another man. But then Brian returns and everything in Calliope's new life goes topsy-turvy...

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Former singer/actress and perennial rule-breaker Mary Ellen Dennis is the author of several award-winning historical romance novels and culinary mysteries and is growing her audience for both. She is married to novelist Gordon Aalborg (aka Victoria Gordon), whom she met online through a writer's group; they live on Vancouver Island.

She has two books in stores this month, released by Sourcebooks Casablanca: The Greatest Love on Earth—set in the exotic world of a 19th century circus and sweeps readers into death-defying feats, dangerous rivalries, and a love that has all the thrills and romance of the greatest show on earth., and a reissue of The Landlord’s Black-Eyed Daughter: A fast-paced and passionate retelling of the story of two timeless lovers who would die for each other. If only they didn’t have to. This gorgeous romance gives the poem a whole new depth and a happy ending. For more information, please visit www.maryellendennis.com.

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A quick note from me, I am over at The Unread Reader today and talking about what I do when I am not reading.

Come say hi :)

Guestpost and giveaway: Christy English with The Queen's Pawn

Today I have a guest post by Christy English, and at the bottom of this post you will find a giveaway of The Queen's Pawn. And it's open to all. So join in.

Welcome to Mur-y-Castell!

Royal Scandals at the Court of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine

Guest Blog by Christy English, author of THE QUEEN’S PAWN
and TO BE QUEEN: A NOVEL OF THE EARLY LIFE OF ELEANOR OF AQUITAINE

In my first novel, THE QUEEN’S PAWN, I touch on one of the royal scandals of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine’s court, specifically, King Henry’s relationship with the young French Princess Alais. Alais came to England, betrothed to Prince Richard the Lionhearted, only to become the mistress of his father, the king. THE QUEEN’S PAWN explores the political intrigues and personal pain surrounding this liaison. Needless to say, Henry’s dalliance with the princess was frowned on by his courtiers, his sons, the King of France, and of course, Queen Eleanor.

But the scandals of the royal court of Henry II began even before Henry was king in England. In the year 1151, Eleanor was still Queen of France; she had been married for fourteen years to King Louis VII. Eleanor’s first marriage never produced a son and heir either for the duchy of the Aquitaine or for the kingdom of France. While King Louis seemed content that this was the will of God, Eleanor was not, and she worked for years to arrange an annulment that would set her free from the prison of her first marriage.

And now, we begin to see where the scandal come in: a little less than a year before Eleanor’s annulment was granted, eighteen year old Henry, Duke of Normandy, came to Paris to be confirmed as Duke by his overlord, King Louis of France. Eleanor and Henry met in a moment of instant mutual passion that I wrote about in my upcoming novel, TO BE QUEEN. After Eleanor was freed from her marriage to the King of France in the spring of 1152, in July of that year, Henry and Eleanor met at her palace in Poitiers, and married secretly.

Why marry in secret, you ask? The marriage that allied the great duchies of Normandy and Aquitaine should have been a wedding to rival that of Prince William and Kate. With one major difference: Eleanor and Henry married without their overlord’s permission. Their feudal lord was none other than her ex-husband, King Louis of France.

Once word of their secret marriage reached Louis, he was furious. Jealous and betrayed, Louis rode to war against the erstwhile couple. Henry of Normandy, as great a politician as he was a warrior, managed to make peace with Eleanor’s first husband, though the relationship between Henry and Louis was strained for years to come.

Henry went on to reclaim the throne of England, his rightful inheritance that had been taken by the usurper, Stephen of Blois. Upon Stephen’s death, Henry was crowned King of the English, and Eleanor was crowned Queen. For the first fourteen of their marriage, Eleanor and Henry were happy. Producing a child every year or two, they were allies and partners, working together to maintain the empire that they had created. Stretching from England, Ireland and Wales down to Normandy, Brittany, Anjou and the Aquitaine, no such empire had been seen since the time of Charlemagne. But with two people as strong willed as Henry and Eleanor, the marriage did not stay serene.

The scandal that drove a major wedge between Henry and Eleanor went by the name Rosemund Clifford. A young girl, a mere knight’s daughter, Rosemund has been described as the opposite of Eleanor. Quiet, demure, with soft blonde hair and clear blue eyes, Rosemund was a girl untouched by politics, who owned nothing save the clothes on her back. Henry was charmed by this girl, and set her up in a house of her own near his hunting lodge at Woodstock. But while this house was being built, Henry had the audacity to place his mistress in the royal castle at Oxford. Eleanor, eight months pregnant with their last child, Prince John, journeyed over the Channel in winter to see this Rosemund for herself. When she found the girl tucked away in her own keep, just as the gossips had said, a rift was torn in Eleanor and Henry’s marriage that was never truly made whole again.

Seven years later, Eleanor united with her sons in a rebellion against King Henry, the greatest scandal of Henry’s reign. Henry defeated his sons on the field of battle and forgave each of the boys, but placed Eleanor under house arrest. She stayed locked away until Henry died in the summer of 1189.

Royal scandals in the court of Henry II always had political ramifications, but often rose from personal conflicts. When ruling monarchs square off against each other, the personal becomes political, and once happy partnerships turn into a morass of betrayal.  

Thank you Christy for this great guest post.

And now to the contest

THE CONTEST PART IS CLOSED

Giveaway:

*1 copy of The Queen's Pawn

*Ends November 26th

*Open WORLDWIDE

*Please leave your email if it's not in your profile, or email it to me, Blodeuedd.

*Comment on the post, ask a question or just say you are entering :)

*And I usually do not do this, but if you twitter about this contest, post it on your blog, or something else to spread the word you will get 1 extra point for each thing you do. Just leave links for the things you do. You can come back later to post them.

The Queen's Pawn - Out NOW

Princess Alais of France travels to England to marry Richard the Lionhearted, the son of King Henry II, armed only with her dowry, the valuable Vexin. When Alais arrives in the land of her father’s enemies, she is welcomed by the beautiful and powerful queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine. Eleanor, the richest and most influential woman in Europe, sees a kindred soul in the young French princess. Intrigued by the girl’s strength and fire, Eleanor adopts Alais as her protégée, teaching the girl what it takes to be a woman of power in a world of men. But Eleanor and Alais’ love for each other is threatened when the capricious and imperious King Henry meets the lovely young princess. Fascination with the king draws Alais deep into political intrigue, and she soon discovers what Eleanor is prepared to do to retain her position as queen. Alais, the one-time pawn, takes ruthless action of her own, as the two women become rivals both for the king’s love and the throne of England itself.

Who is Christy English?

I am a writer of historical fiction centering on Eleanor of Aquitaine, Alais of France, and the Plantagenets of the 12th Century. Look for my novel THE QUEEN’S PAWN from the New American Library, an imprint of Penguin.

My second novel, about Eleanor of Aquitaine’s marriage to Louis VII of France, TO BE QUEEN, will be published by the New American Library in April 2011.

When I am not writing about Eleanor of Aquitaine, Alais of France, and the Plantagenets of the 12th Century, I am at the theatre, visting the Metropolitan Museum of Art or roller skating in Riverside Park in New York City. Join me on my continuing adventures at ChristyEnglish.com.

Guest post: Helen Hollick and The Forever Queen giveaway

Today I have Helen Hollick over for a guest post And at the bottom of the post there is a give-away of 2 copies of her book The Forever Queen.

Welcome!

Hello and thank you so much for having me on your blog today! I thought I’d talk a little bit about the Vikings, as they play a very big role in my latest release, The Forever Queen, about Emma of Normandy who became a great Queen.

If accepted history is to be believed, the “Vikings” were the bad lot of the late eighth to mid eleventh centuries. They would not be out of place in modern times kitted up in leathers and making a nuisance of themselves on their motorbikes.  However, the myths of history are not always accurate: i-víking is a term which means “to go raiding” but was soon appropriated to describe the Scandinavian sea-farers from Norway, Denmark, Finland and Sweden – the North Men - much as the term “Anglo Saxon” has come to be used for the Angles, Jutes, Friesians and Saxons – the English.

Nor is our image of huge, broad-shouldered men in fur cloaks wearing horned helmets leaping ashore from their dragon-prowed boats to rape, pillage and plunder completely accurate. Sorry, there were no horned helmets, and there was very little pillaging and raping.

Christian churches became a prime target because that was where the gold and valuables were. All else was no different to any other period of unrest in history. The original Celts came from Europe, perhaps got into a few fights with the indigenous people, but mostly settled peacefully. Then the Romans came. Ditto. Then the Anglo Saxons. Then the Vikings, with the Normans following behind - although the Norman encroachment into England was slightly different, and is the subject of my next novel, I Am The Chosen King (US edition of Harold the King) Norman, however, is an abbreviated form of North Man – a Viking. The Danish were the main settlers, particularly in northern England, Yorkshire especially. They settled in great enough numbers to influence the change of the political and cultural map and even affected the English language. For the ordinary people, I doubt the change of dominant people made much difference. For the Church, it was a disaster. Which is why the Vikings received such a bad press. The monks, after all, were the ones who kept the written records and who wrote the history down.

The North was the main settlement area primarily modern Yorkshire, Northumbria, Cumbria and the Midlands. York – Jorvik – is perhaps the best example of how England almost became part of Scandinavia after 865. The Jorvik remains are re-created as a living history tour experience, and I have to say, done very well. The feeling that you really are walking down a “Viking” street, with all the sights, sounds and smells is incredible.

Raids on England were somewhat sporadic until the mid 800’s but by the late 850s Viking armies had started to over-winter in England, their numbers gradually becoming larger armies with an obvious intention of conquest. In 866 York capitulated and by 867 the kingdom of Northumbria was under Viking supremacy. From  876 the army moved south, forcing most of Wessex to submit. Nearly all of England was in Scandinavian hands.

Enter King Alfred the “Great”. Almost defeated, he hid in the marshes of Athelney in Somerset but re-formed his army and defeated the Vikings in 878 at Edington in  Wiltshire. His victory enforced an uneasy peace during which he established a navy, built fortresses, and constructed an efficient defensive strategy. When the Vikings returned in the 890s Wessex was able to resist. At his death in 899 Alfred was king of an independent English kingdom. It was Alfred who ordered the 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle', a record of contemporary events to be written – the custom surviving from his reign until the 12th century. If it were not for the Viking raids, and Alfred, we would probably know very little about this period.

Alfred’s son Edward the Elder (899-924) and his grandson Æthelstan (924-939) were even more important to England. Edward, with his sister Æthelflæd, widow of the Mercian king, conquered the south of England from the Danes. Æthelstan continued the fight, and his  greatest success was victory at Brunanburh in the north. He became the first, true, King of All England.

The Norse presence remains today, reflected in modern place-names: for instance, towns with endings of -
by  which meant homestead or village : Derby, Rugby, Whitby, Selby, Grimsby
thorpe (or thorp, thro, trop) ‘farm’: Scunthorpe. Grimethorpe
toft or tofts - a house or a plot of land: Lowestoft

By contrast, much of East Anglia and Essex kept a majority of typical Saxons names, while Devon and Cornwall retained their British (Welsh) origins. Yet “English” did not disappear – rivers, fields, forests kept their “Saxon” names, indicating there must have been communication between the old settled and the new settlers.

Many Old Norse words survive in the dialects of modern north east England – Newcastle Upon Tyne’s “Geordie” accent as a good example. To many a Southerner the words are indecipherable - even in the eleventh century, it was remarked that the “Northerners” spoke very differently. The North/South divide has not changed much!

Much of the Norse language has become part of the English language. Words such as 'husband', 'knife' and 'window', while many surviving words are connected with farming and boats.

The subtle blending of one race of people with another is an interesting and intriguing part of English history. The Normans, under the command of William Duke of Normandy completed the Scandinavian conquest in 1066 – or did they?

For all the raiding, pillaging, plundering, raping and settling, these vast North Men armies and their various leaders did not wholly conquer the English.

For proof, I am writing this in English, not Danish, Swedish or French…!

Blodeuedd:

Thank you Helen for this interesting post :) 

Giveaway:*CLOSED*
*2 copies of The Forever Queen to 2 winners

* Ends: 22nd November

 * Open to US and Canada.

* If your email is not in your profile then please leave it here, or email it so I do not have to hunt you down if you win.

* Ask a question, comment on the guestpost, or just tell me you're entering :)

THE FOREVER QUEEN BY HELEN HOLLICK – IN STORES NOVEMBER 2010
What kind of woman becomes the wife of two kings, and the mother of two more?

Saxon England, 1002. Not only is Æthelred a failure as King, but his young bride, Emma of Normandy, soon discovers he is even worse as a husband. When the Danish Vikings, led by Swein Forkbeard and his son, Cnut, cause a maelstrom of chaos, Emma, as Queen, must take control if the Kingdom—and her crown—are to be salvaged. Smarter than history remembers, and stronger than the foreign invaders who threaten England’s shores, Emma risks everything on a gamble that could either fulfill her ambitions and dreams or destroy her completely.

Emma, the Queen of Saxon England, comes to life through the exquisite writing of Helen Hollick, who shows in this epic tale how one of the most compelling and vivid heroines in English history stood tall through a turbulent fifty-year reign of proud determination, tragic despair, and triumph over treachery.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Helen Hollick lives in northeast London with her husband, daughter and a variety of pets, which include several horses, cats and two dogs. She has two major interests: Roman / Saxon Britain and the Golden Age of Piracy--the early eighteenth century. Sourcebooks Landmark will release the next chapter on Helen’s 1066 saga, I Am the Chose King, in Spring 2011. For more information, please visit http://www.helenhollick.net/

Guestpost: KT Grant + For the Love of Mollie giveaway CLOSED

Today I welcome KT Grant, the author of For the Love of Mollie to my blog. And stay tuned cos at the end I am giving away this e-book.

Welcome to Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell :)

One of the reasons I love reading romance is because of the too good to be true hero. I just can't get enough of that drop dead gorgeous, rich, tall, has a nice smile and a body that would make most woman swoon at his feet man. So I guess it makes sense I would try my hand at writing my own too good to be true hero. That's where Conner Bean from my latest release, For the Love of Mollie comes into play.

Coming up with a hero like Conner was somewhat hard. It's one thing to make him this god among men (and women), but I also wanted to give him enough dimension. This is a guy you'd want to sit down and talk to and perhaps welcome him as your new friend. Also an important part when writing a character like Conner, is to give him enough depth so he's not too ho-hum on the page. The first person that came into my mind when writing Conner is the actor Ryan Reynolds.

I adore Ryan and have since he was a teenage on the Nickelodeon show Fifteen back in 1990. I watched Ryan come into his own as an actor and as a very attractive man. The moment I came up with the idea of Conner and For the Love of Mollie, I wanted Conner to have those same attributes that I find so pleasing in Ryan.

In regards to my heroine Mollie McGree, the main star of For the Love of Mollie, I wanted to write her with a few self imposed faults. If Mollie was this near perfect heroine, then there would be no story. Mollie, like most women, including myself, have issues with their weight. I constantly think I need to lose another ten pounds. Mollie feels she needs to lose more so she can catch the eye of her friend, JC, who cares for her only as a friend because he loves someone else. JC is not attractive to Mollie sexually, not because she may have too many curves, but his feelings are elsewhere. Mollie's opinion about herself is the catalyst that moves along the story. In my mind, I think of Mollie as an attractive woman who needs to embrace who she is, curves and all. The one woman who is so very self-assured and has an amazing body is Kate Winslet. To me, Kate is one of the most ideal women I've ever watched in movies. I wrote Mollie with Kate in mind. Mollie even says at one point, while she's arguing with Conner, that people have said she looks like Kate Winslet. That's the moment where Mollie has her realization that she is beautiful and should be proud to look the way she does. Conner certainly thinks so.

Choosing Ryan for Conner, and Kate for Mollie is my thank you to them for helping my create characters that readers many enjoy and remember.

B: Thanks for coming by! And mmm Ryan, good choice

You can purchase For the Love of Mollie at ´Decadent Publishing

Bio: KT Grant is a self-proclaimed eccentric redhead who not only loves to read a wide variety of romances, but also loves writing it. Under her alter-ego, she is a well known book reviewer and blogger who doesn't shy away from voicing her opinion. A proud native of New Jersey, KT is multi-published and known for writing "out of the box" romances. KT has been quoted in such publications as the Romance Writers Associations’ Romance Writers Report and Night Owl Reviews. She has also been mentioned in the Guardian.UK, Publisher's Weekly's Beyond the Book and at Bookseller.com.

You can visit KT Grant at her website: http://ktgrant.com/
Her Personal blog at Babbling About Books, and More! http://kbgbabbles.blogspot.com/
On Twitter: http://twitter.com/katiebabs
On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/kate.garrabrant

GIVEAWAY

To win this e-copy of For the love of Mollie all you have to do is comment :)

Of course I always appreciate a little more, ask KT a question, comment on the post, the book, more is always fun.

1. Open to ALL, as long as you have an email so the book can be sent to you.
2. Ends August 30th

3. Please, if your email is not in your profile then do leave it here so I can contact you. You have 5 days to respond.

CLOSED

Guest post: Caridad Pineiro with Sins of the Flesh (+contest)

Todays guest is Caridad Pineiro, I am happy to welcome her to my blog. At the end of this post you  can win a copy of her book, Sins of the Flesh.


Caridad: Thank you so much for having me at your blog!

Today I wanted to share with you some behind the scenes info about my latest release, SINS OF THE FLESH, the first book in an exciting new paranormal suspense series from Grand Central Publishing.   Hopefully you’ll find some of the places that will be appearing in the book interesting.


Because I love the Jersey Shore, I decided to set all of the books in the SINS series in various towns “down the shore” as the Jersey folk day.  SINS OF THE FLESH takes place in the hero’s home – Bradley Beach, New Jersey. According to the town website, “(t)he earliest accounts of Bradley Beach can be traced back to 1679 when it is said that Captain William Kidd anchored his vessel off Duck Creek, now known as Sylvan Lake.”


Captain Kidd! How cool is that, although I don’t have any pirates in my book, just some arguably mad scientists doing weird gene experiments.

I visited Bradley Beach several times to do research and am continuing to go back for more research as I write the second book in the series – STRONGER THAN SIN - which will feature Mick’s little sister Liliana. Liliana is a doctor at a local hospital and is doing a residency in orthopedic surgery.

Bradley Beach is a quite family-kind of town, perfect for a hero like Mick who needs to get away from his dangerous life as a mercenary.  This photo is of the Bradley Beach Centennial Fountain.  I originally had a scene where the villain finds a photo of Mick and his family in front of this fountain, but we cut it.  My editor thought it would be too easy for the villain to find them with such a clue.  If you’d like to see more pictures from the Jersey Shore towns in the SINS series, you can visit the albums on my website

In the winter, a lot of the towns really quiet down.  For example, Bradley Beach goes from having about 30,000 inhabitants down to about 4,000.  Again, a nice secluded place for nefarious activity.  In STRONGER THAN SIN, coming out in October 2010, much of the action occurs in the Fall when the area is quieter.  STRONGER is set mostly in Spring Lake and Ocean Grove.  The latter is a quaint Victorian town with beautiful gardens and the famous tent city.  These tents go up in the early spring and come down in the late fall.  People will spend their summers in these tents and that has been going on for nearly 100 years.

The different feels of the towns and their uniqueness help me give each of the SINS novels a slightly different feel while highlighting an area that I really love.

I hope you enjoyed this view into the locations for SINS OF THE FLESH.


And now to something else, thanks to the nice people at the Blog Tour

CONTEST

It ends already tomorrow Friday, Jan 22nd.
The winner will get the book Sins of the Flesh and a t-shirt.
Please leave your email if it is not a part of your profile.

Extra Entries:
+4 for asking Caridad a question
+2 Tweeting or blogging about this



You can also go and visit other blogs that are a part of this tour to see what happened there.

The Sins of the Flesh Book Tour 2010:

Mon Jan 11: BronzeWord Latino Authors
Tues Jan 12: Julia Amante
Wed. Jan 13th: Latino Books Examiner
Thurs Jan 14th: Babbling About Books and More
Friday Jan 15th: Heidenkind
Mon Jan 18: Una in a Million
Tues Jan 19: Pagan Spirits
Wed Jan 20: Bergers Book Reviews
Thurs Jan 21: Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell
Fri Jan 22: Chasing Heroes


links:

Link to website: Website
Link to the book on the site: Sins of the Flesh
Link to Video: Video
Link to Podcast: Podcast
Link to prequel: Prequel

SINS OF THE FLESH (Grand Central, Hachette Books, ISBN: 978-0-446-54383-5)

Caterina Shaw’s days are numbered. Her only chance for survival is a highly experimental gene treatment – a risk she willingly takes. But now Caterina barely recognizes herself. She has new, terrifying powers, an exotic, arresting body — and she’s been accused of a savage murder, sending her on the run.


Mick Carrera is a mercenary and an expert at capturing elusive, clever prey. Yet the woman he’s hunting down is far from the vicious killer he’s been told to expect: Caterina is wounded, vulnerable, and a startling mystery of medical science. Even more, she’s a beautiful woman whose innocent sensuality tempts Mick to show her exactly how thrilling pleasure can be. The heat that builds between them is irresistible, but surrendering to it could kill them both . . . for a dangerous group is plotting its next move using Caterina as its deadly pawn.

Guest post and Giveaway with Lori Brighton #CLOSED#

I want to introduce you to Lori Brighton, the author of Wild Heart, which is coming out now in November 2009. Thank you  Lori so much for this lovely guest post. 

Check the details in the end of the post for the giveaway. I will draw winners next Wednesday and email Lori the winners. So remember to leave details if they are not in your profile.

*Since Blodeuedd is located in Finland, I thought it would be interesting if I discussed overseas sales and how they happen, along with comparing examples of book covers from around the world. But I quickly realized I didn’t know a thing about overseas sales. Nope, nothing at all. I asked on my author loop. Sadly, no one else seemed to understand overseas sales either. In fact many people don’t even realize they’ve sold to another country until their book pops up or a reader mentions it. So I ditched that idea, but realized there was no reason I couldn’t still talk about book covers. 

For an author, when we receive our book cover it is one of the most important moments in our career. We get to see our hero and heroine as the reader will. I still remember the moment my editor, very excited, sent me as an email attachment the cover of my book. Honestly, I was so nervous I had to wait a good five minutes before I opened it. Finally, heart pounding, I clicked on that file. The picture burst before me…beautiful, sensual…and totally, utterly wrong. 

As are many women, I’m a dark-haired hero kind of girl. Yet, when I wrote Wild Heart, I knew Leo, my hero, had blond hair. Think Brad Pitt in the movie Legends of the Fall. So imagine my horror when I opened my book cover file and found Leo, my dear, wonderful alpha Leo, had dark hair! It gets worse. Ella, my heroine, who was supposed to have brown hair, had blonde! It was too late to change the cover. I could either leave it as it was, or I could rush through my manuscript and change the coloring in the pages. I didn’t feel right not having the picture match the descriptions and so I combed through my book and gave Leo dark hair and Ella blonde. 

Somewhat depressed, I went to my author loop to discuss my options. Guess what they said? It happens all the time. And there have been worse. Take the infamous Christina Dodd book cover of a woman with three arms. Yes, three arms. Can you find them? Ms. Dodd didn’t even realize her heroine had three arms until a reader pointed it out. But instead of being horrified, she was thrilled that her infamous cover helped her sales. 

With all these mistakes, does this mean authors have no say in their covers? Not debut authors. That’s between the editors (who will often fill out forms describing characters) and the art department. But for the most part it depends on the publisher and how established the author is. I’m sure there are many NY Times Bestselling authors who do get to fill out that infamous form describing their characters. But in the end, it will still be up to the editor and art department because they know what sells. 

If you think authors are left in the dark about many decisions, you’re right. Overseas sales are even worse since most authors don’t even realize when their book is sold in another country. It’s safe to say most authors don’t have any input in the covers overseas. Still, its fun to compare countries. Many authors will post their original covers as well as overseas covers, if you’re interested. They’re usually quite different as you can see from the examples I’ve brought with. I’m sure a person could do a study on how book covers differ country to country and what that says about each culture.


Once the artists come up with some sketch ideas for the cover, they call in the models. Yes, that man you’ve been drooling over on the cover of the book you’re reading is real. And yes, it’s probably the same male model used on that other book by another author you just read. As great as those romance covers are, they do tend to have a similar feel. My personal favorite is that all too familiar hero grasping the heroine from behind. See my cover. The truth of the matter is that to save money, publishers often reuse book covers. They might change coloring, or scenery here and there, but if you look closely, you’ll see many similarities on your favorite covers. 

If you’re interested in reading more about the book cover process, I found this wonderful article by author Stephanie Bond:

As Stephanie explains the art department knows what they’re doing. We might think those covers are redundant, we might not understand why they use a certain color, but they understand. They know what shades sell (green, for instance, is supposed to be a bad color), they know what hair color sells, what scenery sells. And those suggestive covers that define romance novels… well, I assume they wouldn’t do them if they didn’t make a lot of money. 

The good news is that lately I’ve noticed publishers are really stepping up when it comes to producing amazing book covers. Kensington, which is a smaller publisher, has produced some top notch books lately. 

*So, do book covers matter to you? Are you embarrassed by overly seductive covers? Does the hair coloring of the hero and heroine have to match the color inside the book? Leave a comment! Three people will win a signed copy of my debut book Wild Heart!

Ends: November4th

WANTON…

Leo Roberts is next in line for an earldom and the power and fortune that come with it, but he is uncultured, unrefined—and completely untamed…until governess Ella Finch arrives upon the scene. Can so young and inexperienced a woman tutor him in the manners and mores of his class? Leo’s mysterious past has rendered him an outsider, too wild for polite society. But he finds her innocence most intriguing…

WILLING…

What manner of man he may be, Ella does not know. Yet he fascinates her and she must know more. Capturing Leo’s reckless heart is about to free her in ways she never dreamed of…and his sensual touch releases the deepest yearnings of her body and soul …

Guest Post: Gail Carriger, author of Soulless

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Gail Carriger, the author of Soulless. The book is out this week A fantastic mix of historical romance, paranormal, urban fantasy, steampunk and comedy of manners.

Characters

Sometimes, in the days (months, years) of query letters (boy did I write a lot of them) I would worry about how to describe my own writing. It's a fine art, trying to sell yourself, but there was one phrase I never failed to use: character driven.

I adore writing characters, it's my absolutely favourite part of being an author: the invention of new people and the revisiting of old friends. Some authors get annoyed when a story is hijacked by a minor character, I love it. I like caricatures that I can break down or twist suddenly into something unexpected. I like silly quirks and strange mannerisms, sinister aspects and hidden secrets. I draw pictures of my characters. I give them magazine quizzes. I invent elaborate back-stories that never make it onto the page.

This may have to do with the fact that I like people. In fact, I kind of collect them. My house tends to be the party event venue, the sleep over spot, sometimes known as Grand Central Station. Mine is a real life peopled with highly colorful characters, they have leaked into my stories, whether I like it or not.

As a terribly side effect, I have a terrible habit of falling on love with my side characters. I think a lot of writers have this happen. Oh, don't get me wrong, I love the hero and heroine too, but there is something so delightfully comfortable about a minor butler or best friend who slides in, quips something Wilde and witty, and then exits in a plume of verbal sophistication.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you read my book and fall in love with even just one character, I've done my job. You can hate everything else about it, but that character will haunt you. He or she will get to live, for a little, in your mind. As a writer, I can think of no greater thing to have happen.

Ms. Carriger began writing in order to cope with being raised in obscurity by an expatriate Brit and an incurable curmudgeon. She escaped small town life and inadvertently acquired several degrees in Higher Learning. Ms. Carriger then traveled the historic cities of Europe, subsisting entirely on biscuits secreted in her handbag. She now resides in the Colonies, surrounded by a harem of Armenian lovers, where she insists on tea imported directly from London and cats that pee into toilets. She is fond of teeny tiny hats and tropical fruit.

Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she is being rudely attacked by a vampire to whom she has not been properly introduced!

Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire, and the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible.

Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?
My review
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Michelle Moran guest post

Why Cleopatra’s daughter?

It all began with a dive. Not the kind of dive you take into a swimming pool, but the kind where you squeeze yourself into a wetsuit and wonder just how tasty your rump must appear to passing sharks now that it looks like an elephant seal. My husband and I had taken a trip to Egypt, and at the suggestion of a friend, we decided to go to Alexandria to see the remains of Cleopatra’s underwater city. Let it be known that I had never gone scuba diving before, but after four days with an instructor (and countless questions like, “Will there be sharks? How about jellyfish? If there is an earthquake, what happens underwater?”) we were ready for the real thing.

We drove one morning to the Eastern Harbor in Alexandria. Dozens of other divers were already there, waiting to see what sort of magic lay beneath the waves. I wondered if the real thing could possibly live up to all of the guides and brochures selling this underwater city, lost for thousands of years until now. Then we did the dive, and it was every bit as magical as everyone had promised. We saw the blocks that once formed Marc Antony’s summer palace, came face to face with Cleopatra’s enigmatic sphinx, and floated above ten thousand ancient artifacts, including obelisks, statues, and countless amphorae. By the time we surfaced, I was Cleopatra-obsessed. I wanted to know what had happened to her city once she and Marc Antony had committed suicide. Where did all of its people go? Were they allowed to remain or were they killed by the Romans? And what about her four children?

It was this last question that surprised me the most. I had always assumed that Cleopatra’s children had all been murdered. But the Roman conqueror, Octavian, actually spared the three she bore to Marc Antony: her six-year-old son, Ptolemy, and her ten-year-old twins, Alexander and Selene. As soon as I learned that Octavian had taken the three of them to Rome for his Triumph, I knew at once I had my next book. And when I discovered what Cleopatra’s daughter lived through while in exile – rebellion, loss, triumph, love - I absolutely couldn’t wait to start writing. I can only hope that the novel is as exciting and intriguing as the research proved to be. It may be two thousand years in the past, but a great love story, as they say, is timeless.



About Michelle:

Michelle Moran was born in the San Fernando Valley, CA. She took an interest in writing from an early age, purchasing Writer's Market and submitting her stories and novellas to publishers from the time she was twelve. When she was accepted into Pomona College she took as many classes as possible in British Literature, particularly Milton, Chaucer, and the Bard. Not surprisingly, she majored in English while she was there. Following a summer in Israel where she worked as a volunteer archaeologist, she earned an MA from the Claremont Graduate University.

Michelle has traveled around the world, from Zimbabwe to India, and her experiences at archaeological sites were what inspired her to write historical fiction. A public high school teacher for six years, Michelle Moran is currently a full-time writer living in California with her husband.

Check out Michelle's blog
Visit the her webpage and have a look at the lovely trailer


If you haven't yet then enter in my Cleopatra's Daughter and The Heretic Contest HERE. Open to all and ends on Sep 10th.


Thank you Michelle for this guestpost, I sure didn't know that 3 of her children were taken to Rome. Very interesting, and sure makes me want to read the book to find out more