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This is a mini-rant after one of our cats got on the back of my desk chair and dug one claw and only one claw into my shoulder. Again! I can’t help wondering – yet again – how does he do that? The why, I know, is because it gets my immediate and undivided attention, although not always in the way he expects, which is usually to get in my lap. And yet he continues to believe it’s the best way to say hello when I’m working at the desk. GRRRR! <that’s the dog in me showing its teeth . . . So, why IRead More →

Just this week I reread two of Stephanie Laurens’ shorter books, both originally published as Harlequin Historicals, Fair Juno and A Comfortable Wife, and noticed something. There were scattered plot devices/elements in both of them that show up in several of the Cynster stories and yet they are by no means the same story. That got me to thinking about how authors choose to explore various topics again and again without actually telling the same story. The only other author I’ve really made special note of doing this is Jayne Ann Krentz but I’m sure others do. Maybe it’s more noticeable with her because sheRead More →

I think I’ve mentioned before how much I hate discussions about reviews. I generally end up ranting about it once a year. The thing that bothers me isn’t the reviews themselves – I do in fact use the occasional review in information gathering about a book – but what bothers me is the plain fact that whenever reviews get discussed terminology get so confusing. Any and every comment from a simple “I liked/disliked the book because . . . ” to full-length critical analysis gets called a review. Bah, humbug. Seriously, it’s all I can do to sit on my hands and not respond inRead More →

I spent most of the weekend rearranging the bookshelves in my bedroom and have come the conclusion that I simply have too many books. Probably not as many as some but what gets me is that even after I weeded out the ones I’ve had for a while and still haven’t read or simply didn’t like all that much – an annual event that usually happens around this time of the year – I didn’t free up all that much space. I’m seriously thinking of putting some of my older author collections that I only rarely read nowadays into boxes. Maybe some of those under-the-bedRead More →

Okay, here’s the story. I picked up two new books while grocery shopping on Saturday. One was Catspell by Colleen Shannon and the other was Irresistible Forces, an anthology featuring both romance and fantasy/sci-fi authors. I knew immediately, like in the store when I was picking it out, that the Shannon book was a spin-off/sequel to one I’d seriously thought about getting a year or so ago and never got around to picking up. Now I see I have some major catching up to do since she’s on the third or fourth in set. Anyone else read them? However, one of the author’s names onRead More →

I can’t believe it’s been September since I last posted. I certainly didn’t mean to take that long to make a decision on blogging. At present, I plan to continue but not with quite the same focus as before. I’m still going to be commenting on my favorite pastime of reading but I may also play with a couple of other topics, too. I’m still feeling my way about those however, so we shall see. And on the topic of reading, one of the reasons I decided to dive back into blogland today is that Kristie (J) got me to thinking the other day withRead More →

After a long absence due to health, personal and family matters, I’ve finally decided that I think part of the reason I’m having a major problem getting back into the swing of blogging myself is that I don’t like how comments are handled on most blogs, and especially when it’s my own blog. The feedback comments, I mean, not the blogs themselves. I still regularly read several blogs and continue to look for more. I also intend to continue this one, at least for the next month or so. Then I’ll make a final decision on that.Read More →

Okay, let’s face it, for all their faults and I freely admit they have them, I love Feehan’s books. I’m hooked on the Carpathians (her Dark series), which I constantly find amazing since I avoid vampire romances with a passion, even though the time warp syndrome in them drives me nuts. So, I just ignore it. I’m intrigued by the Jaguar people in her Leopard series as well as those warriors in the Ghostwalker series. But . . . I’m really having trouble getting into the Drake Sisters and I have no idea why. I have all three stories sitting here unread on the deskRead More →

I haven’t seen anyone mention this anywhere so I thought I would. I don’t know how many of you had the old Rocket or Gemstar ebook readers but even those that didn’t may be interested to learn that another company has bought the rights to their software, which means that those of us who liked that device have somewhere to go to get something similar. Very similar. Almost identical, in fact. Check out eBookwise.Read More →

I absolutely loved The Irish Rogue by Emma Jensen and couldn’t put it down the first time I read it. Now, while I realize most of you know that I adore secret identity plotlines (hey, it’s not like I’m keeping that a, um, secret, you know!), what most don’t realize is just how difficult to please I am with that precise plotline. Not many stories make me as happy as this book does, over and over again, because of how well the secret identity theme is used. The reason is both simple and complicated. Quite frankly, most good romance writers can do a decent jobRead More →

I’ve been on a Kinley MacGregor kick lately and have been actively searching out her backlist. And not just getting them to stockpile but reading and enjoying them almost as fast as I find them. And even immediately rereading a couple of them. Don’t you just love it when you find a new author to binge on? (G) Well, the last one I read, Born In Sin, was about yet another arranged marriage and it got me to wondering something related to the previous soulmates discussion. Anyway, for those of you that don’t like soulmates as a device in romances, how do you feel aboutRead More →

I’ve been a little under the weather for the last week, more or less, so I’m playing catch up . . . starting with all the blog feedback comments I haven’t responded to here. So, if you’ve left one in the last week or so, please check back on it. Hopefully, I’ll get back into the swing of things in the next day or so and add a few new blog entries.Read More →

Several weeks ago on one of the fan fiction forums I visit, there was a mention of a thought provoking essay about alternative universe in fan fiction and I thought some of you might like to check it out. I especially like how the author of the essay breaks down the logical “choices” that a writer makes in deciding which direction to go. It really helps me to see where some of my own fan fiction ideas are giving me problems and why. Lots of food for thought if anyone is into fan fiction.Read More →

I just cleaned out my TBR basket because it was beginning to take over my bedroom. I was amazed to discover that one reason the books seemed to be multiplying out of control were five books I’d started then tossed back into the basket to read later. And still don’t want to read. Maybe I usually clean out the basket more often but I’ve never noticed that many false starts there before. So, I thought I’d share the list before I shelved them to see if anyone else had read them. They are, in alpha order: Brallier, Kate: Seal Island – I probably got theRead More →