Title: The Smoke Thief
Author: Shanna Abe
Series: The Drákon book 1
Publication Info: Bantam, Oct 2006
Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance
Rating: <3 <3 <3 <3

Ms. Abe combines my favorite two romance genres, Historical and Paranormal, for a delightful adventure that soars through the star-strewn sky and delves deep into the fire of the human heart.

Plot:

Clarissa Rue Hawthorne was born an outcast, a half-blood in the mysterious and sheltered clan of dragon shapeshifters. She will never fit in, so she breaks the clan’s laws, fakes her own death and escapes to London. She spends nine-or-so years building a secret life for herself: the proper widow by day and a Smoke Thief at night. But her past catches up with her in none other than the dragon king himself, Christoff, Marquess of Langford, who comes to London dangling the most precious jewel of all as bait. She can’t help but visit the stone and is caught up in Christoff’s deadly claws.

Christoff has been raised for one thing: to rule his people with an iron fist and keep them safe from the human Others. He is the Alpha and must marry the Alpha female of the tribe, but no woman in generations has been able to Turn into Drakon. When he lays a trap for the outlaw who dares expose their secrets by stealing the Ton’s jewels, he never imagined he would find a female who could Turn, or the lost little girl who caught his notice so many years ago.

But there is another rogue drakon theif in London and he steals the drakon jewel from under their noses. Rue makes a devil’s bargain: her freedom for his. She must join forces with the indomitable Christoff to find the jewel before the week is up. Christoff is injured in their search. Rue has the chance to escape to freedom, or to try to save the Alpha. She might have won her freedom, but she lost her heart.

Discussion:

Christine has been telling me about this book for over a year and I don’t know why I didn’t get around to reading it until now. I couldn’t put it down! The attraction between Rue and Christoff burns red hot and their cat and mouse chase keeps the pages spinning. I loved the descriptions of the dragons flying through the clouds. This is a Cinderella story: Rue’s childhood crush comes to fruition, bringing the now all-grown-up domineering Alpha male to her feet.

The one thing I would have changed is the long airy prologue. I think that backstory could have been communicated through the book, or in a shorter prologue. I’m excited for the next one, The Dream Thief, which stars Rue & Christoff’s daughter and Rue’s street urchin companion Zane.

Today is my two year blogging anniversary, when I finally decided “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” and started my own blog. My sweetie started his world-traveling evangelist job for Adobe three years ago this month–thanks to blogging non stop, usually all night long, coming to bed at 4 in the morning because he just had to write one last blog post. Eek! In the last two years I’ve tagged along with him to New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Switzerland, Ireland, Japan, and New Zealand. I’m still hoping for Scotland, one of these days, but we’ll see.

My favorite part of blogging is meeting the awesome community of book lovers on the internet. To celebrate my 2 year anniversary, I’m going to give away a fabulous book to 2 lucky commenters. Bound By Your Touch is the second novel by brilliant Meredith Duran. No sophomore slump here, Duran’s book is even more captivating than the first. If you want a superbly written romance with complex characters and witty dialogue, look no further. I predict great things from this rising star–a shelf full of RITAs and NYT Best Seller status.

Please leave a comment describing your favorite book by, oh, Sunday June 7. 2 comments will be selected at random to win a copy of this outstanding novel.

BOUND BY YOUR TOUCH by Meredith Duran (June 2009 – so you have to wait a few weeks to get it)

Silver-tongued Viscount Sanburne is London’s favorite scapegrace. Alas, Lydia Boyce has no interest in being charmed. When his latest escapade exposes a plot to ruin her family, she vows to handle it herself. Certainly she requires no help from a too-handsome dilettante whose main achievement is being scandalous. But Sanburne’s golden charisma masks a sharper mind and darker history than she realizes. He shocks Lydia by breaking past her prim facade to the woman beneath . . . and the hidden fire no man has ever recognized. But as she follows him into a world of intrigue, she will learn that the greatest danger lies within—in the shadowy, secret motives of his heart.

Title: Passion Unleashed
Author: Larissa Ione
Series: Demonica, Book 3
Publication Info: Grand Central Publishing (formerly Warner), March 2009
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating: <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

The Demonica series is hands down one of the best dark paranormal series in print. Fans of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood and Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark take note. Readers will delight in this thrilling tale of demonic love and an epic battle of good and evil.

Plot:

Half vampire, half demon Wraith, the tortured brother of Eidoldon and Shade from books 1 and 2, has turned into a mature Seminous demon. He can’t run from his terrible past, and tries to drown his pain by recklessly killing bad guys and trying to impregnate everything in sight. His brothers have done all they can to save him from his destructive path, to no avail. An old enemy is out to kill the brothers, and Wraith is the first one of the hit list. He gets poisoned by a toxin with no cure. His only chance is to steal a survival charm from its keeper, but when he discovers her he finds the task isn’t as easy as he thought.

Serena Kelley has guarded the charm since her mother gave it to her–sacrificing herself in the process. Her life depends on keeping the charm, but she has to stay a virgin in order to do so. When she meets Wraith, pretending to be human, she thinks she might have found a man worth sacrificing for. But heaven and hell have a stake in the charm too. A fallen angel is bent on using the charm to unleash Armageddon, and heaven can’t let that happen.

Wraith is torn. Is his miserable life worth more than this woman he has come to care for? Wraith has never been the noble type, but the fate of the world rests on his decision.

Discussion:

Another brilliant novel from an excellent author! The world building in these books is rich with demon lore, inter-species political machinations and magic rules. The characters’ transformations are compelling and believable, and their interactions set the pages on fire. Ms. Ione is on my must-buy list. I love how complex the story is, with multiple plot lines and many potential-heroes I’m eager to read about in future books. Reaver is really intriguing, as is the newest Seminus brother, Lore. I also love how Armageddon is set in Jerusalem. Why aren’t more end-of-the-world type battles set where the last battle is supposed to be set? I’ve been to Jerusalem and seen the Dome of the Rock and other sites, which makes reading books set in those locations even more interesting to me.

My favorite is still book 1, because I love protective heroes more than tortured ones, but PASSION UNLEASHED is a close second.

My recommendation: READ THIS SERIES!! (in order-it’s important)

1. Book 1: Pleasure Unbound (Eidoldon’s story)
2. Book 2: Desire Unchained (Shade’s story)
3. Book 3: Passion Unleashed (Wraith’s story)

The Damned Scribbling Women have issued the Hunky Hero challenge from the Royal Reviews:

Can you help our Hunky Hero???

He may have the physique of a roman statue but our poor Hunky Hero is none too bright when it comes to women. He wants to be a leading man but right now, he’s no more than a secondary character. The Charles Bingley to Fitzwilliam Darcy. The Ashley Wilkes to Rhett Butler. The Frank Randall to Jamie Fraser. The…oh, you get the idea.

Determined to be the hero he was born to be, he’s embarked on a mission to find out what it takes to win a woman’s heart. But without the assistance of a few selfless book bloggers, our Hunky Hero is destined to wander the blogosphere forever shirtless, clueless and lonely.

You can help!

• Your favourite hero from a novel (and why he’s so great)
• A short excerpt or quote involving that hero
• Who you would want to play the hero in a movie version of the book

After you’ve given our Hunky Hero an much needed education, please pass him on to five (5) other book bloggers you think might be able to teach him a thing or two about love by sending them a link to this post.

My thoughts:

1. The fictional hero who embodies this ideal is Branden Kel-Patin from GAMES OF COMMAND by Linnea Sinclair
2. I’ve lent my copy out, but here’s a cute snippit from Sinclair’s website:
   “Sebastian—”
   Pause.
   There was always the pause after her name. The glare. It was a small ritual she’d most times found humorous, almost endearing.
3. Who would I want to play Kel-Patin in the movie version? Ummmm…Jonathan Rhys Meyers?

You’ve been tagged! (no, you don’t have to play if you don’t feel like it)

1. Alpha Heroes
2. The Happily Ever After
3. Good Books, Bad Books
4. Shelli Stevens
5. Desert Island Keepers

On Saturday local romance readers and authors gathered at the King County Library in the middle of nowhere Covington for a Romance Extravaganza!!

Jacquie Rodgers and Ann Charles: Pre-Published Promotion

Sadly, getting lost, roadwork on the freeway, and Seattle’s gnarly traffic conspired against my attendance at the morning meeting. I caught the last half hour or so… These are my notes, not theirs.

Jacquie and Ann spoke about developing a platform to expand your readership. These tools must include a website (buy your domain name now!), and can include workshops and speeches, mailing lists, and social networking sites like facebook, twitter, goodreads or group blogs.

Three questions to identify when creating your platform:

1. Who are you known as NOW?
2. How do others see you?
3. Where do you want to be a Year from now?

Agents and Editors want to see authors have current websites with interactive elements (such as blogs or newsletters). It needs to be updated frequently so that readers return to the site. A newslist is only meaningful if it has more than 2000 names. They want to see that you’re putting yourself out there. Headshots, which you will put on your website and in the back of your books, should be indicative of your subgenre and writing. Write paranormal? Your picture should be dark and mysterious. Write contemporary romantic comedy? Your picture should be bright, sunny and colorful.

Jacquie encouraged us to find author mentors who is a success in some aspect of promotion that you want to include in your business model. Hers are Stella Cameron for having some of the first book trailers (which are now common), Gerri Russell for networking and establishing a broad reader base, and Rowena Cherry for podcasting greatness. She recommended copromoting on your website by giving away friends’ books. Ann looks up to Jane Porter for always being gracious and kind, Yasmine Galenorn for her disciplen, JA Conrad who has a great publishing for newbies resource on his website, and Jacquie Rodgers for being a social networking whore. She stressed the importance of ALWAYS being gracious, courteous and kind.

The two writers have launched a new website for author and aspiring author promotion: www.1stturningpoint.com

Jayne Ann Krentz defends Pop Fiction

Author Jayne Ann Krentz, who writes Regency romance as Amanda Quick and futuristic romance as Jayne Castle, made an eloquent and uplifting defense of popular fiction. I wanted to stand up and shout “Yes! YES! THAT is why I love the romance genre!” If only I could bottle her speech to replay when needed. A former librarian herself, Jayne applauded librarians for getting romance into the libraries. Culturally, Americans think “if a book is in the library it is somehow a ‘real’ book.” She said that romance authors are not alone – no popular fiction authors feel they get respect.

The prejudice against romance is just a sharp part of the bias against pop fiction in general. The convention and standards held up in literary fiction is a masculine style of writing that abhors sentiment and strong emotion, but his is NOT the style of our historic heroic tradition. It is a relatively recent convention based on psychoanalysis and modern angst. Anything with wide appeal is highly suspect in our culture; it is taken for granted and treated with little respect. But popular fiction has it’s own place in our culture and society. It is NOT watered-down literary fiction. It stands on it’s own and draws its power from the historic heroic tradition – not modern angst. It is wrong to use the standards of literary fiction to judge popular fiction.

Popular Fiction “teaches us we need not be victims, but with courage and honor we can vanquish our fears and triumph over adversary.” – Jayne Ann Krentz

In literary fiction, the protagonists are victims. The genre focuses on their alienation and disfunction: the destructive aspects of the human condition. Popular fiction, on the other hand, pits good against evil on a broad scale. Its protagonists may be victims, but honor, courage, determination and love they triumph despite the hurdles in their path. Pop fiction holds up optimism over despair. It has an enormous survival value. Lit fiction does not hold these values important. It illuminates and examines human neuroses, but does not solve them.

Jayne’s Arcane Society is an effort to tie together her many personas and encourage readers of one subgenre to try the others.

Historical and Paranormal Romance Panels

You can tell we were having a great time!

Amanda Quick, Gerri Russell, and Library Goddess Deborah Schneider (RWA bookseller of year 09)

Stella Cameron, Alexis Morgan and Cherry Adair, (Yasmine Galenorn not pictured)

After the Romance Extravaganza, Cherry Adair invited everyone to a very delicious High Tea, while she regaled us with sage advice on writing, plotting and publishing. While some authors urge us to write the “book of our heart,” Cherry Adair urged us to write in a subgenre that we will want to stick with and continue writing in for many books to come. The food was amazing, the company divine. Looking forward to next year!

Title: Crooked Hearts
Author: Patricia Gaffney
Publication Info: Signet, Dec 2001
Genre: Historical Romance
Rating: <3 <3 <3 <3

A delightful, crafty romp with two crooked souls who are perfect for each other. Picture George Clooney in Brother Where Art Thou or Ocean’s 11 and give him a female counterpart of equal cunning and skill. This book is refreshing; forget honor, forget morals, forget all those “typical” heroic traits we read about over and over again. These two con artists will steal every reader’s heart.

Plot:

1880′s, San Francisco. On a roadtrip to swindle poor shmucks out of their fortunes, Grace Russell runs into a con artist who could give her a run for her money. She may be dressed as a Catholic nun, but Reuben Jones knows a fake when he sees one. Though to be fair, without his disguise as a blind man, Grace would never have let down her guard (and her clothes). When bandits attack the stagecoach, the two must band together to escape before anyone uncovers their disguises. Who needs trust? Grace and Reuben join forces to recoup their lost money, despite the mountain of lies between them. They concoct a plan to sucker the mob boss of Chinatown for money. Instead of handing over the cash, the mob boss kidnaps Grace, and it’s up to Reuben to save her. They escape to Grace’s farm outside San Francisco and plot an even better revenge. Hijinks ensue.

Discussion:

This is my second Gaffney book (WILD AT HEART was the first), and I’m a fan. Fast paced plot, funny, playful dialogue and absolutely charming characters. Grace and Reuben’s sharp tongues are equally as intriguing as their sharp minds. I like especially when Grace makes fun of Reuben talking about wine. What’s with the cover though, really? Tasteful, but very booooring. The book is not boring. For a fun, fresh read, I highly recommend it!

Romance is the most maligned genre of literature, despite being the highest grossing. How do publishers afford multi-million dollar contracts for first time literary fiction authors? On the backs of romance. We, romance readers, are the most loyal fans. We are powering through the recession, earning even more profits for Harlequin despite the buying downturn through the rest of the economy. Unfortunately, most people who criticize the genre as “bodice-rippers” and “crotch novels” have never read one. I’ll leave the eloquent arguments to Smart Bitches who Love Trashy Books and Dear Author. Check out the stats on romance readers from the Romance Writers of America to see that we’re a highly diverse, highly educated bunch. Escapist fantasies? What book, besides a textbook, isn’t an escapist fantasy? That’s what reading is. That’s what TV and movies are. ENTERTAINMENT.

Romance novels are delicious. Nom…nom…nomnomnomnomnom.

What I want to share with you now is the time honored wisdom: Don’t Knock it till You’ve Tried it

Here are 13 recommended books (all of which I’ve read and loved) in each subgenre of your reading persuasion. Go ahead, try one. I double-dog dare ya.

1. Contemporary: This Heart of Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
2. Paranormal: Pleasure Unbound by Larissa Ione
3. Historical: It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas
4. Regency: The Spymaster’s Lady by Joanna Bourne
   
5. Science-Fiction: Games of Command by Linnea Sinclair
6. Fantasy: The Moon Witch by Linda Winstead Jones
7. Suspense: Mr. Perfect by Linda Howard
8. Young Adult: Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith (sigh, or Twilight…but who’s left who hasn’t read it?)
9. Women’s Fiction: Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas
10. Erotica: Go Fetch! by Shelly Laurenston
11. Contemporary Category Romance: Marriage at the Millionaire’s Command by Anne Oliver
12. Paranormal Category Romance: Raintree Inferno by Linda Howard
13. Suspense Category Romance: Strangers in the Night by Kerry Connor

Title: Gabriel’s Ghost
Author: Linnea Sinclair
Publication Info: Bantam Spectra, October 2005
Genre: Science Fiction Romance
Rating: <3 <3 <3 <3

Yet another hit from Science-Fiction Romance Author Linnea Sinclair. I’m beginning to think she can’t write a bad book! The Lusty Wenches Book Club, which met this weekend to discuss the book, was in agreement: Ms. Sinclair spins a damn fine tale.

Plot:

Space fleet captain Chasidah “Chaz” Bergren has been committed of a crime she didn’t commit and sent to the prison planet Moabar, a sure death sentence. She survives an attempted rape by one of her guards, only to find herself in the clutches of her smuggler adversary Gabriel “Sully” Sullivan, who supposedly died two years ago. She wouldn’t trust him as far as she could throw him, but Sully claims to have come to Moabar with the express goal of breaking her out. With help from the Englatarian Missionaries, Chaz waltzes to freedom dressed as an Eglatarian Nun. Sully needs her help to uncover illegal genetic labs that are breeding monsters – jukors – on the space station where Chaz grew up.

Can Chaz trust Sully after chasing the rebel/smuggler/mercenary through space for years? Especially when Sully’s best friend turns out to be a mind-ripping Stolorth. Sully’s insistence on keeping her in the dark and refusing to answer her questions doesn’t encourage her confidence in their partnership. Yet something is growing between them, and it isn’t just their need to uncover conspiracy and save the galaxy. With each new trial, a new layer of Sully is uncovered, each terrifying, each fascinating, each revealing a tortured man who is very much in love with one stubborn former-space fleet captain.

With the Empire on their tail, Jukors about to reap carnage and their closest allies threatening to jump ship, Chaz and Sully must face their demons and trust each other enough to get out alive.

Discussion:

None of the other Wenches had read Ms. Sinclair before, and all look forward to reading her again. New fans! WOOT! My job here is done. While GAMES OF COMMAND and FINDERS KEEPERS are still my favorite, GABRIEL’S GHOST comes in a close third of my favorite Sinclair books to date. GG was written in the first person, and I prefer third person for romance. A romance novel is in essence a relationship between two people, and getting into the heads of both those characters gives me the greatest rush living vicariously through their unfolding love. While Ms. Sinclair did an excellent job showing us Sully’s emotions as seen through Chaz’s eyes, I would have liked to get into his head and watch him deal with some of his self-esteem issues. The book club agreed that Chaz’s horror of Sully’s true nature wasn’t quite enough conflict to keep the two apart through the end of the book. I thought to myself, “Dude, he’s a great guy. if you don’t want him, GIVE HIM TO MEEEEE!!!!”

That said, Ms. Sinclair isn’t writing straight romance, but science fiction with a romance plot. Non-romance fans will be quite happy with the amount of non-romance plot in the book. Intergalactic battles, intrigue and adventure.

I love heroes who love their heroines from the beginning. Kel-Patin (Games of Command) was like that. Sully has that same adorable affliction. Makes me melt. I want to steal Sully for my hut. Chaz is a kick-butt, self-sufficient heroine who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to fight for it. Faith is a big struggle for her after all the men in her life (father, brother, ex-husband) have walked out on her.

We could have analyzed the theme of faith or the treatment of religion in the book (the Engletarians) or the symbolism of Chaz’s knife, but we didn’t explore the many layers of Ms. Sinclair’s excellent writing. We liked it. We want more. We want Ren’s story, ‘cuz he almost stole the show.

64 Best Books of 2008 have been wheedled down to 2. There have been heartbreaks and triumphs, trash-talking, black eyes, broken dreams (SOB!). Friendships have shattered and unlikely alliances forged in their place with blood, sweat and oh so many tears. Today Romance Novel March Madness comes down to a final vote: who will be the one book to rule them all?

You know I have a girl crush on Mercy Thompson. But when the lines are drawn and the final gladiators enter the ring, there will only be one book that rules me heart. So head over now to the Dear Author Bitchery Award for Hellagood Authors and vote for Joanna Bourne’s THE SPYMASTER’S LADY.

Read my review of Iron Kissed (4 hearts)

Read my review of The Spymaster’s Lady (5 hearts)

And here it is (from way in the 2nd round) your moment of zen:

Werewolf romances call to the romantic in me. I crave them, devour them, hunt them down. Perhaps it started with my love of Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series. (Oh, Adam! I want your babies.) Or maybe Kelley Armstrong’s Bitten. Vampires leave me cold (heh, heh), but a hot-blooded, baby-loving Alpha gets me every time. (Jacob rules! Edward…well, you know. Haha.)

SHEWOLF by Teresa D’Amario

A yummy werewolf romance and PRISM finalist. It was my first book from Freya’s Bower and I successfully downloaded it on my iPhone using the Stanza app. (I was quite proud of myself!) The hero is an alpha who embodies everything I love about a true alpha hero: he is a Protector & Provider. Family (pack) is everything to him, and he is willing to go to any lengths to protect what is his.

Anna is a veterinarian with a special gift with animals. She is accosted in a dark alley one night by two inhuman males. A dark predator comes to her rescue. Though she finds him strangely attractive, she can’t forget her terrifying new-found knowledge that werewolves exist.

Kieran stepped down as pack alpha after he failed to stop his parents murder, but he still acts as enforcer, protecting the pack’s secret existence. When he stops two wolven from a rival pack from kidnapping a human woman, he is surprised to find himself attracted to her. More than attracted: the longer he spends in her company, the surer he is that she is his true mate. How can that be, when Anna is convinced she’s fully human?

Anna and Kieran are embattled on all sides, but time is running out. When Anna is kidnapped, both must decide who they are and who they want to be in the future. Will they protect their hearts and stay in their own seperate worlds, or will they risk everything to be with the one they love?

Fertility is a big theme and source of conflict. I love it. If you like werewolf romances, read this book!

FULL MOON OF WEREWOLVES

Ms. D’Amario is one of the guest authors on Lori Devoti’s Full Moon of Werewolves. Many authors are guest posting with excerpts from their werewolf books and giving away free copies. Check out the schedule:

Today’s guest post is by author Cynthia Eden, who asks for your thoughts on alpha werewolves. As I’ve only ever read one beta werewolf hero (Terry Spear’s HEART OF THE WOLF), I don’t have much experience with non-alphas.

What is your favorite type of paranormal romance? Do you prefer werewolves or vampires, and why? Can you recommend your favorite werewolf or shape-shifter romance to me? (Please, sir, I want mooooore!)