#BBAW–Bestest and Most Memorable Book Recommendations of All Blogging Time

Day three of Book Bloggers Appreciation Week, brought to you by the Estella Society, brings us back to books and the ones we've read because of other bloggers. This is a pretty long list of books for me, personally, so I've decided to narrow it down to the most memorable recommendations I've received. Let the backlinking begin!

Book 1: The Princess and the Penis by RJ Silver
Recommended by: Penny from Penny Romance
Penny's given me a lot of good recommendations over the years, but this is by far my favorite. I mean, why else would you buy a book with this title unless someone insisted you should? It's a lot better and more charming than you think it will be.

Book 2: The Chocolate Touch by Laura Florand
Recommended by: Kelly from Reading with Analysis
I loooooooooooooooooooooove this book. Love! Like, if I could imagine the perfect book for me, it would have everything that's in this book.

Book 3: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Recommended by: Candace from Beth Fish Reads
Continues to be my favorite audiobook of all time. The narrator, Alyssa Bresnahan, is ahmaaaaaaaayyyzing.

Book 4: Mind Fuck by Manna Francis
Recommended by: Kris from Kris 'n' Good Books (blog is no longer with us)
This is a perfect example of a book that would have never, ever, crossed my radar if it hadn't been for blogger recommendations.

Book 5: The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart
Recommended by: Melody from Redeeming Qualities (great name for a book blog, by the way)
This was the second book I read for The Project Gutenberg Project, and I LOVED it. It was the ideal way to kick off a new blog.

Book 6: The Magpie Lord by KJ Charles
Recommended by: Anachronist from Portable Pieces of Thought
I think you'd have to have a heart of stone not to find Charles' books charming and fun. I love her characters and her settings, even when the plot drags a bit.





That's just a small selection of the fabulous recommendations I've received, of course. Thank you to everyone who recommended a book to me that I enjoyed!





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Upcoming Releases I Am Actually Super Excited About

Once upon a time, I kept a very detailed spreadsheet of upcoming releases, which I updated on a weekly basis. Nowadays, I'm the complete opposite–unless I happen to see a new release announcement on Facebook or Twitter, I exist in a fog where book releases do not register on my radar at all.

As I've said before, there aren't a lot of authors on my auto-buy list anymore. Even for authors I do consider "auto-buy," by the time I figure out they have a new release out it's usually at the library (unless they self-publish of course), so I borrow it there. If I love it, then I can buy it to add to my collection. If not, no loss on my end.

But! There are a couple of books I'm super excited about coming out later this year. What are they? *drumroll*

The English Spy by Daniel Silva (June 30th)–Silva's one of my auto-buy authors. I loved The English Girl, and The English Spy's title suggests this book will focus more on Christopher, one of the secondary characters populating the world of super agent Gabriel Allon. That's a good thing, because the book after The English Girl, The Heist, languished a bit.

In other news, I really hope Gabriel destroys Isis.

Oblivion by Kelly Creagh (July 28)–I read Nevermore, the first book in this trilogy, wayyyyyyyy back in 2010 and loved it. It was like if Snape and Lily actually hooked up at Hogwarts. The second book, Enshadowed, was meh and skimmable. But! I love Creagh's writing style and I want to find out what happens with Varen and Isobel next, and I've waited far too long for this book to get it from the library.

Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas (October 27)–A new historical novel by Lisa Kleypas! Dreams really do come true! I've been kinda off historical romance for a while, but Kleypas still has my loyalty. Perhaps because she hasn't published a historical since 2010, when I was still reading them, but anyway. Excitement! (And thanks to Colette from A Buckeye Girl Reads for giving me the heads up about this one.)







Okay, so I know that's only three books, but for me it's a lot. What are some upcoming releases that are on your radar?



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4 Mini Book Reviews

Hi there one and all! I'm at Book Riot today reviewing four books for Buy, Borrow, Bypass:

• Neanderthal Seeks Human by Penny Reid
• Waking the Merrow by Heather Rigney
• Patricia Brent, Spinster by Herbert Jenkins
• Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

All of these books deserve longer, more thoughtful reviews, which I hopefully will be able to write soon. But since I recently took on another job (for those of you keeping track at home, that's three jobs), time is a bit at a premium nowadays, so I can make no promises.

If you've read any of these books, let me know what you thought here or over at Book Riot!



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TSS—Books About Books

After finishing The Salinger Contract by Adam Langer, I was reminded of how much I adore books about books. I mean, reading a book while reading about books??? So meta.

One of the more interesting themes to me in books about books is books are usually presented as dangerous. They tend to lead people to places they never intended to go, take over their lives, or unleash evil onto the world. I think this is a reflection of the fact that you never know what a book is going to be until you start reading it. Every unread book represents unlimited possibility, and that can be scary.

Another theme I discovered while compiling this list: a lot of books about books have really long and tortured titles.

Here are a few books about books that I've read. Are there any books about books that you've enjoyed? Share 'em in the comments!

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling

Chamber of Secrets is my favorite of all the Harry Potter books, mainly because it's about a book. But also because it has a hilarious Valentine's Day scene that makes me rotflmao every. single. time.

(Actually, now that I think about it, Order of the Phoenix, which is my second-favorite Harry Potter book, also has a hilarious Valentine's Day scene. Hm.)

Incidentally, if you missed it on Twitter yesterday, in an interview with The Sun Times, JK Rowling said she wished she'd hooked Harry and Hermione up rather than Ron and Hermione.

The Salinger Contract by Adam Langer 

A thriller about a millionaire who spends his money commissioning writers to pen books just for him ("What else am I going to spend my money on?"). But then he, like, DOES THINGS with them.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

A witch and historian recalls a manuscript from the depths of the Bodleian Library, only to discover that the manuscript is so magic much evil, and she's the only person who's been able to recall it since it disappeared hundreds of years ago.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

A bookish person is hired by a reclusive, famous writer to tell her life story.

Not every book about books is a good book. I actually did not like this novel. At all. I tried to read it several times; the last time was for a book club I was in with Colette from A Buckeye Girl Reads. We were both just like, "Yeahhh. Nope."

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

Goodreads tells me this a book about a book, but I just seriously do not remember. I think I tried to erase this book from my mind.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

This is another book that I read for Colette's book club. Unlike The Thirteenth Tale, though, I very much enjoyed it. It's about people who use books to survive the German occupation in WWII.




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2013 Round-Up

Favorite GIF of the year.

Guys, did you realize it's December already?? I kid, I knew it was coming all along. And since the year is ending, one feels the need, forced upon one by the Gregorian calendar and popular culture, to reflect on all happenings since January. This will probably come as a shocker, but I read a few books. Here are the stand-outs, with links in case you missed 'em:


Favorite New-to-Me-Author: Craig Johnson
Johnson writes the Walt Longmire series, which has been turned into a TV series on A&E (Longmire). The TV show is okay, but the books are so much better. Hell is Empty is one of the best books I read all year.


Best Spy/Thriller: The English Girl by Daniel Silva
A surprisingly emotional, thoughtful book for a spy novel. Daniel Silva is also an awesome writer. This is another author whose entire backlist I want to read IMMEDIATELY.


Best Forgotten Classic: Vera by Elizabeth von Arnim
This book is like a very dark, cynical Rebecca; yet it's also weirdly funny because von Arnim is so freaking clever. I would recommend it to anyone who thinks Edward Cullen is a stalker.


Favorite Not-Forgotten Classic: Animal Farm by George Orwell
Kind of the perfect novel, in my opinion.


Favorite Book Actually Published in 2013: The Bridge by Rebecca Rogers Maher
I pretty much love everything about this novella—the characters, the premise, the setting, how the romance developed, the tone, and the ending. A very hopeful, uplifting, romantic book.


Only Book That Kept Me Up Past My Bedtime: The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway
It's a real challenge for me to find a book that will keep me up wanting to read one more chapter, one more chapter, no matter how tired I am. The River of No Return did that, and I loved it. This one also has great characters and the chemistry between Julia and Nick was page-scorching.


Favorite Art-Related Non-Fiction Book: The Brinkley Girls by Nell Brinkley
I have a bias for beautiful, huge books that are heavily illustrated (it's the art historian in me), and The Brinkley Girls is definitely that. Nell Brinkley was an iconic illustrator of the late 1910s and -20s, whose drawings influenced the fashion of an entire generation of women. Her comics weren't just pretty to look at, though—they also had surprisingly feminist storylines. The Brinkley Girls contains all of Nell Brinkley's full-page color comics, and a little info on the artist herself.


Best Art-Related Novel: In the Frame by Dick Francis
I do love Francis' painter heroes, and Charles Todd is no exception.


Best Mystery: The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie is so tricksy, you guys. I honestly didn't know who Mr. Brown, the criminal mastermind, was until the end of this novel. Plus, it's hilarious and I LOVE Tommy and Tuppence. Can they be my best friends? Pleeeeease?


Book I Can't Believe I Waited This Long to Read: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
If this book had been long enough, I seriously would have kept reading it for the entire year. IT'S THAT AWESOME. Also, I have a serious lady crush on Lady de Winter. Such a badass.


Book Most Obviously Destined to Become a Cartoon: The Suicide Shop by Jean Teulé
Just read it. Then you'll know.


Book I Had the Most Fun Mocking: Tough one! I think this has to be a tie between Inferno by Dan Brown and Secrets and Lords by Justine Elyot.


Favorite Discussion: I'm so glad Bridget from Portable Pieces of Thought agreed to read and discuss The Sheik by EM Hull with me. In the running for best book discussion ever.


Favorite NON-Bookish Thing: I am obsessed with the TV show Scandal. Colette from A Buckeye Girl Reads has been trying to get me to watch it forever, and I was like, "Meh," cuz I don't really do the political drama thing. But one night I decided to just bite the bullet and watch, and was immediately hooked. I recently got the first season from the library and binge-watched the whole thing in two nights, then immediately wanted to rewatch it. It's THAT addicting. It's not just a political drama, it's about true love and gladiators and solving mysteries and loyalty vs trust. Anyway, if you haven't watched it, you should.



Reflection time! I read a lot of mysteries and classics this year. I still enjoy romance, but I'm getting to the point where I need more from a romance than just two people getting it on to keep my attention. I also feel like I didn't read much this year, and according to Goodreads that's true. I've read less books this year than I have since 2010: only 139 books (so far), compared to 193 in 2012 and 158 in 2011. So next year I'd definitely like to make an effort to read more.

On a more personal note (notice how I stuck that at the end? I hate talking about myself), 2013 was a really hard year for me. My grandma, with whom I was very close, died of Alzheimer's. It was really awful and I still don't want to talk about it. But there were good things that happened this year, too. Since I was unemployed and pissed off about it, I decided I was going to try to break into freelance writing. And even though I'm making nowhere near enough to live on yet, I do have several paying writing gigs. I love being my own boss and getting paid to do something I enjoy. And I went to Las Vegas for the first time in October and met up with some fellow bloggers, which was awesome and a blast. w00t! I've made so many great friends through this community of book bloggers, I don't know what I'd do without you all.

So there were some excellent things that happened in 2013, and I'm more than willing to take the good with the bad. That being said, I really really REALLY hope 2014 will be better than 2013.

Hope you all have a great Christmas, and if I don't post between now and the 31st, may you have a fabulous, champagne-filled New Year's.


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Jennifer Burrows on What is it About Books?

Today I'm hosting a guest post from Jennifer Burrows, author of A Shot In the Dark, as part of her blog tour with ABG Reads Books Tours. There's a tour-wide Rafflecopter giveaway at the end of her post, so be sure to enter!

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I love reading books, almost more than I love writing them.   A good writer can get me so absorbed in the story and the characters that I won’t put down the book until I’ve finished it.  I love the feeling of escaping into another reality especially when I’m stressed, or just need a break from everyday life.  Often times, the feelings the characters have are so palpable, it makes me relate to them.

I recently read the Hard Rock Series by C.M. Stunich.  Without giving up too much of the story, two rock stars, Naomi and Turner,  have a history in which one can’t remember yet he was attracted to the other and wasn’t sure why.  Naomi had been hurt very badly by Turner and was trying her hardest to forget about him.  There was so much raw emotion with this story, and the pull of the love-hate relationship made me eager for more.  Needless to say, I read these books about two months ago and I’m still thinking about them.

I like a book that keeps me guessing.  I don’t like when I can figure out the plot and how the story is going to end in the first three chapters.  I started a book this week and it was just that, very predictable.  I haven’t been able to pick it back up.  There are only so many books I can read about womanizing gazillionares who fall for the girl who drastically changes his life for the better.  I need more from a book.

While I love the dirty romance books, I also love thrillers.  I can’t say enough about Dan Brown’s books.  How many books do you read in which you learn something and yet you’re thoroughly entertained the entire way through.  Now if Dan could add a little more romance, I’d be all in!

I love finding a good book boyfriend.  Who doesn’t?  In the Hard Rock Serious, Turner Campbell is dirty.  He has a dirty mind, dirty mouth, and he’s physically dirty.  I was having a hard time getting into that.  But when I looked at the cover and saw what Turner was supposed to look like, I was all in.  Turner went from dirty gross to dirty hot in about thirty seconds.  That is the power of a great book.  Between the story, the cover, and the mental images the reader creates a connection is created with the author and the story.

Many people say they don’t like to read or they don’t have time to read.  My personal feeling is they haven’t found the right book.  Because when you find the right book, you suddenly love to read and you make the time to finish it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Novel Conspiracies

I heard about this article on Conspiracy Theories About Classic Characters at Bookarama and immediately got sucked in. They aren't really "conspiracy theories," more like reinterpretations--for example, Nick from The Great Gatsby is gay. Actually every character in the article is gay. Anyway, I immediately started thinking of my own "conspiracy theories," as you do.

Theory 1: Snape is Harry's father figure, not Dumbledore. I already wrote about this extensively in For the Love of Severus Snape, so I'm just going to leave it at that and let the original post stand.

Theory 2: Elinor Dashwood is in love with Willoughby. "ELINOR Dashwood?!" you're no doubt thinking. "But it's Marianne who's supposed to have fallen in love with Willoughby in Sense and Sensibility." You're right, voluble reader, Marianne did fall in love with wandering Willoughby. But I think Elinor did, too. I'm sure we can all agree that there is nothing attractive about Edward, and it's a well-known law of romance novels that opposites attract. Wouldn't it be natural for uptight, logical Elinor to develop a tendre for the romantic and brooding Willoughby, especially after learning Edward was already engaged? Who better to serve as Mr. Rebound than him? No wonder she didn't tell Marianne to pull herself together and stop acting pathetic after they learned Willoughby was engaged--she was glad her sister wasn't going to get him! And since it turns out he's really a beta male anyway (totally Sophia's bitch), Willoughby and Elinor are actually kind of perfect together.

Theory 3: Doctor Seward is actually mental. I find it very weird that Doctor Seward from Dracula lives in the asylum where he's a doctor. Who does that? You'd think he'd want to get away from his job... IF IT REALLY IS A JOB. How do we know he doesn't just THINK he's a doctor there and that the real doctors are humoring him to see if his delusion runs its course? After all, it seems like the only "work" he does is to natter into his phonograph, and he can take off whenever he wants. Very suspicious. His "mentor," Van Helsing, is probably Seward's psychiatrist, and he encourages the people at the asylum to accommodate Seward's illness by giving him employment. The whole thing with Lucy being a vampire and Arthur "thrusting his stake" into her was a delusion brought on by her rejection of Seward's marriage proposal.



Further Reading:

• "Conspiracy Theories About Classic Characters" by Emily Temple on Flavorwire
• "Friday Bookish Buzz: Looking for a Snow Day" on Book-a-rama
• "For the Love of Severus Snape" on Truth Beauty Freedom & Books

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Guest Post: 5 Most Anticipated Books

I was brainstorming with Colette from A Buckeye Girl Reads on silly end-of-the-year lists the other day, and we thought it would be fun to list our most anticipated books of 2012 and what we thought of them. This is Colette's list; to see my list, go to A Buckeye Girl Reads!

Colette's Most Anticipated Books of 2012

I didn't realize that I read quite so many Urban Fantasy books until I made this list out. All of the books except for one are from that Genre. I think I like Urban Fantasy's so much because while there is romance, it's secondary to the plot and doesn't take over the whole story line. The guys are tough, the women are tougher and the battle of wills gets me every time. Why must all UF books end in a cliffhanger?? I think that reason alone is why most of these books are on my most anticipated list of 2012.

5.  Chasing Magic by Stacia Kane #5 in the Downside Ghosts series (Urban Fantasy)
If you had told me that I'd like a series that features a drug addict for a heroine two years ago I'd have laughed you out of the room. However, Chess is one of my top five favorite heroines. I think it's because she's not perfect, has flaws, tries to do the right thing but doesn't always succeed. The love interest in this series isn't your typical alpha male, and Terrible has won a place in my heart because he's just not what you expect. These two make an unlikely pair, and I love it. The world is one where the ghosts had an uprising, and the goverments have failed, and The Church of The Truth rules everything. They keep the ghosts in check, and if a family or business should find themselves being haunted the church sends someone to see if it is in fact being haunted. That's where Chess comes in. She tries her best to prove or disprove a haunting. I love how her cases always revolve around other subplots and I love seeing them all come together in the end. In this book Chess is more vulnerable then before, and we get to see more of her role in the church. This series isn't religious, but it is dark, gritty and raw. I love how it pulls me out of my reading comfort book. Each book in this series is better then the last.

Magic-wielding Churchwitch and secret addict Chess Putnam knows better than anyone just how high a price people are willing to pay for a chemical rush. But when someone with money to burn and a penchant for black magic starts tampering with Downside’s drug supply, Chess realizes that the unlucky customers are paying with their souls—and taking the innocent with them, as the magic-infused speed compels them to kill in the most gruesome ways possible.

As if the streets weren’t scary enough, the looming war between the two men in her life explodes, taking even more casualties and putting Chess squarely in the middle. Downside could become a literal ghost town if Chess doesn’t find a way to stop both the war and the dark wave of death-magic, and the only way to do that is to use both her addiction and her power to enter the spell and chase the magic all the way back to its malevolent source. Too bad that doing so will probably kill Chess—if the war doesn’t first destroy the man who’s become her reason for living.

4. Keeping Secret by Sierra Dean #4 in the Secret McQueen Series (Urban Fantasy)
 This series has a love triangle that actually works, a heroine that is tough, witty, sassy and doesn't take crap from anyone yet is still really likable and vulnerable. Just as soon as you think you know where the plot is headed something happens that leaves you saying "Wait, what just happened here???" The ending was a cliffhanger that made me want to shake some sense into the heroine, and wanting the next book in the series immediately. This book did not disappoint me at all!

It's a nice day for a white wedding. At least that's what Secret McQueen is hoping for, with her poofy-princess-dress marriage to a werewolf king looming closer and closer by the day. But as ever, nothing can be that easy for a vampire/werewolf hybrid for whom someone still harbors a death wish. 

Summoned to the south by her werewolf uncle, who makes no bones about the fact her mate bond with Lucas doesn't pass muster, Secret learns her furry heritage looks more like a tangled vine than a family tree. Getting her royal uncle s blessing hinges on finding one of the missing twigs. Even with vampire sentry Holden Chancery at her side, she manages to land up to her neck in a swamp of trouble. As an assassin s scope zeroes in, family dramas boil up and a fast-collapsing love square threatens to bury her alive, making it to the church on time could be the least of Secret s problems. Warning: Contains a grumpy bride who shouldn't be wearing wedding white, a motley crew of bridesmaids, a dangerous scenic drive in the woods and a smoking-hot trio of suitors who might be too scorching to touch

3. The Ripple Effect by J.A. Saare #3 in the Rhiannon's Law Series  (Urban Fantasy)
This series made like vampires again. These vampires aren't sparkly and Rhiannon isn't an angst ridden teen. She isn't afraid to get out of the trouble she's somehow landed herself in, and this is another series where anything can and will happen when you least expect it.  This is one of the few series where I like a secondary character more then the main love interest, and like the nice, good guy rather then the super alpha male who is too jerkish for his own good. Each book in this series has been better then the one that came before, and I'm so glad this one didn't disappoint me. I was worried that it had been so long since I read book two, that I wouldn't remember anything that happened and would be totally lost. However, while I was a little shaky on the details from book two, they all came back to me while reading this one, and loved how the recap of what happened in previous books was nicely merged in with the story line instead of taking up all of one chapter by itself.

There is always a price to pay... Rhiannon Murphy visited the future, witnessed hell on earth and made choices to change things for the greater good. Unfortunately there are consequences for her actions, the penalties for her interference possibly more than she can bear. Determined to sever her debt with a fallen angel, she pushes everything aside, focusing on locating Marigold Vesta's resting place. Until death comes knocking at her door. When Disco's maker arrives in New York, he resents Rhiannon on a level she can't begin to comprehend. Yet Marius isn't her most dangerous adversary, not by a long shot. Marius's sire -- a half-demon -- is determined to see the necromancer who stunned the vampire world on her knees. If she won't bend, he'll do everything in his power to make her break. No price is too high, meaning no one is safe -- including Disco and Paine. Dealt a blow from which she can never recover, Rhiannon turns to the only person who can help her: the fallen angel who is relying on Rhiannon to save her soul. Bartering with a creature from Heaven is probably just as dangerous as starting a war with a demon from Hell, but with nothing to lose it's no longer about life or death. It's about getting even

2. The Prince by Tiffany Reisz Book #3 in the Original Sinners Series (Erotic Fiction)
This is the lone none Urban Fantasy book to make it on my list. This book left me breathless. This entire series is one where anything can and will happen. Nothing is safe. If you are thinking this series is just another copy cat of the fifty shades book then you'd be wrong. While there is romance in this series, it's not what it's about, and it's not all about sex either. It has a plot, characters to love and hate, and is one of the freshest series I've read since I started blogging.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer...preferably in bed. That's always been Kingsley Edge's strategy with his associate, the notorious New York dominatrix Nora Sutherlin. But with Nora away in Kentucky, now it's Kingsley's chance to take her place at the feet of the only man he's ever wanted -- Søren, Nora's on-again, off-again lover -- until a new threat from an old enemy forces him to confront his past.Wes Railey is still the object of Nora's tamest yet most maddening fantasies, and the one man she can't forget. He's young. He's wonderful. He's also thoroughbred royalty and she's in "his" world now. But Nora is no simpering Southern belle, and her dream of fitting into Wesley's world is perpetually at odds with her dear Søren's relentlessly seductive pull. Two worlds of wealth and passion call to her and whichever one Nora chooses, it will be the hardest decision she will ever have to make... unless someone makes it for her..

1.  Iced by Karen Marie Moning (Urban Fantasy)
I loved the MacKayla Lane books something fierce, but when I heard a spin off series was being started with a secondary character, Dani O'Malley I was a little hesitant to read this book. I was afraid it wouldn't live up to the standards I had set for the other series because Dani is young. (just 15) She was one of those characters that were annoyingly endearing. I have to say though, that this book while slow in parts, totally won me over. I enjoyed Dani as a lead character much more then I thought would be possible, and Ryodan was just as mysterious and hot as Barrons was. I didn't think that was possible!! Karen Marie Moning has mastered the art of cliffhangers and always makes me forget that there was a part of the book I didn't like by the time I get to the ending. This world continues to fascinate me and I can't wait to see where the next two books will go.

The year is 1 AWC—After the Wall Crash. The Fae are free and hunting us. It’s a war zone out there, and no two days are alike. I’m Dani O’Malley, the chaos-filled streets of Dublin are my home, and there’s no place I’d rather be. Dani “Mega” O’Malley plays by her own set of rules—and in a world overrun by Dark Fae, her biggest rule is: Do what it takes to survive. Possessing rare talents and the all-powerful Sword of Light, Dani is more than equipped for the task. In fact, she’s one of the rare humans who can defend themselves against the Unseelie. But now, amid the pandemonium, her greatest gifts have turned into serious liabilities. Dani’s ex–best friend, MacKayla Lane, wants her dead, the terrifying Unseelie princes have put a price on her head, and Inspector Jayne, the head of the police force, is after her sword and will stop at nothing to get it. What’s more, people are being mysteriously frozen to death all over the city, encased on the spot in sub-zero, icy tableaux. When Dublin’s most seductive nightclub gets blanketed in hoarfrost, Dani finds herself at the mercy of Ryodan, the club’s ruthless, immortal owner. He needs her quick wit and exceptional skill to figure out what’s freezing Fae and humans dead in their tracks—and Ryodan will do anything to ensure her compliance. Dodging bullets, fangs, and fists, Dani must strike treacherous bargains and make desperate alliances to save her beloved Dublin—before everything and everyone in it gets iced.

Have you read any of these novels? What did you think?

TSS-Some Bookish Trends I Hope Will Die 2013

Even Jamie Oliver liked Fifty Shades of Grey!


I was toodling around the internet last week, as I do, and I ran across a post titled "Five Trends I Hope Will Die in 2013". I think it was about celebrities or something, but I can't find the original article. Sorry! Anyway, I thought it would be fun to do a similar list about books.

• Fifty Shades-alike covers--Okay, I get that this is a marketing thing, but the cover wasn't that great to being with and I don't think Fifty Shades was a success based on its cover. So can we please stop creating lookalike covers for every contemporary novel with sex in it?
• Drama llama--Remember at the beginning of 2012 when every week some author would fly off the handle and attack a reviewer, or write a post about how reviews "should" be written online (favorably, of course)? And then there was the GR Bully site (created by, ironically, bullies). Wouldn't it be weird if nothing like that happened in 2013? Just imagine how easy it would be to enjoy reading! 
• Consolidating publishers--Not that I know anything about the publishing industry aside from observation, but in the long term I think the merging of the bigger publishing companies (e.g., Random Penguin) will wind up hurting the Big 6 5 4. To me it seems like the big publishers' problems lie in being slow to adapt to a changing market. Turning themselves into bigger companies is NOT going to help that; publishing is becoming more decentralized and personally I'd like to see more publishers and more variety in the market--that's not self-pub'd--not less. But of course breaking into smaller companies is not only more expensive in the short term, but more difficult to manage.

What are some bookish trends you hope not to see in 2013?

Tasha's Random Awards Results!

GoodReads announced the 2012 winners of their Choice Awards today, which reminded me I started this survey several weeks ago. After many entries, here are the results!

Best Romance: The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie

Runners-up: On the Island, The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton, Austentatious, The Siren, Family Album, The Mistborn Trilogy, Rakes & Radishes

Best Mystery: Anything by Agatha Christie (via write-in votes!)

Runners-up: A Discovery of Witches, Silent in the Grave, Gone Girl, Gentlemen and Players

Best YA: Leviathan

Runners-up: Seraphina, Wonderstruck, There Is No Dog, Code Name Verity, A Million Suns, Rotters

Best Manga: The Arrival

Runners-up: Bride of the Water God, A Bride's Story, Vampire Hunter D, Dramacon

Best Non-Fiction: Le Road Trip and The Homemade Pantry (tie)

Runners-up: The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, Lost in Shangri-La, The Omnivore's Dilemma, The Psychopath Test

Best Humor: Fifty Shames of Earl Grey and The Ghost and the Goth (tie)

Runners-up: My Third-World Girlfriend, Trail of the Spellmans, The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy

Thanks to everyone who participated and wrote in entries like a boss! What do you think of the results?

TSS: Desiring a Well-Ordered Bookish Principle

I like to keep things organized. Somehow this always seems like a struggle, although it really shouldn't be, especially once you have a system in place. But it seems life=chaos and keeping things ordered and neat takes CONSTANT VIGILANCE! (as Mad-Eye Moody might say).

When it comes to my reading, unfortunately, my vigilance has lapsed into nonexistence. Believe it or not, I used to have a system for choosing the next book I would read. It was so organized! And logical. Simply, I read books in the order I received them. Unless I got a new release that I really had to read immediately, of course. Or I'd just read a book in a specific genre, in which case I read a book in a different genre--e.g., having just read a romance I would switch to fantasy. Except most of my books were romances so I didn't switch that often. Okay, maybe it wasn't a perfect system, but it was a system, and it took care of those nasty stretches of nerve-wracking indecision between books (since I only read one book at a time, this is a big deal).

Nowadays, however, there is no axiom of choice. Zero. Nada. It's sheer chaos around here.

The main reason for this is that the majority of the books I read these days come from the library. I've always had trouble fitting library books into my reading system (you'd think having those due dates would expedite some sort of reading order, but nope!), and now that my reading is 50% library books, it's impossible to keep anything organized.

Plus, nearly all of the books I do buy are eBooks, and as far as organization is concerned those are even worse. How can I organize something I can't even see? Especially since I have two eReaders, I can't remember a quarter of the eBooks I have to read or which device they're on.

It's utter madness. I'm getting a headache just thinking about it. I am trying to use my to-read list on GoodReads to keep my "shelves" organized, but I always forget to add books to it; and once the books are listed on there, putting them in any sort of order is a pain in the buttocks. In the BUTTOCKS, I say!

So, help a girl out? How do you keep your books organized and decide what you're going to read next?

What To Do With Your Disappearing Book

I saw a report on GalleyCat about a "new type of book" being released in Argentina called el libro que no puede esperar, or The Book That Can’t Wait (which makes it sound like it has continence issues). Basically, as soon as you open the book, the ink it's printed in starts disappearing. So you better read fast!


Picture of book actually disappearing.

This report got me thinking--what would I do with a hardcover book I paid a lot of money for once it turned blank? Here are some of my ideas:

• Use it as a journal to record thoughts on the transience of life and the ephemeral nature of fame.
• Mail it to the author with a sticky note that says, "Write me."
• Turn it into a game! Rewrite the book from memory, then compare your version with your friends'. Winner gets to buy the next disappearing book.
  
• Pour lemon juice on it, then hold the pages up to a candle flame to see if the words will reappear.
• Pretend to read it on the subway to confuse the heck out of people. Bonus points for dressing like a hipster while doing this.
  
• Loan it to a friend. See how long it takes them to notice the book is blank.
• Try to return it using an outraged old man voice. "What kind of business are you people running here? *harumph harumph*"
  
• Hollow the book out and use it as a safe for your disappearing monies.

What would you use your disappearing book for?

RomCom Title Mash-Up

I heard about a book the other day titled From Notting Hill with Love... Actually. Now, I really know nothing about this novel and haven't read it, so it could be the greatest book published in history (or not); but here's what I do know: THAT IS THE LAZIEST TITLE EVER. Seriously, you're just going to cobble together successful romantic comedy titles and hope that sells? I could do the same in a flat minute. For example:

• When Harry Met Kate & Leopold--In this time-traveling three-way, Harry meets a couple from the future and the past and discovers men and men and women and men and women and women can't be friends, because the sex is ALWAYS THERE.
  
• Becoming Jane Wimbledon--A Regency miss becomes an unlikely tennis star, but her love life is complicated by the fact that she has to pick between two suitors: Laurence Fox and Paul Bettany. Aiiieeee! How will she possibly choose, especially since she can barely tell them apart? (Ooops, I forgot Becoming Jane wasn't a romantic comedy. Never mind.)
  
• My Big Fat Wedding in Manhattan--A shy woman who's a wedding planner falls in love with a client who believes he's a Greek statue and refuses to wear a shirt.* Then they move to Manhattan and she gets a job as the most expensively-dressed hotel maid in the city, leading some to speculate that she's actually a pop singer.
  
• Down with Liberty--The president's daughter falls in love with a star journalist; so to capture his attention, she moves to Europe, invents a new identity, and writes a sensational book suggesting men should do whatever women tell them to. But will the Secret Service discover her before the journalist realizes he's in love?
• Four Weddings, an Abbey, & Me--In this Edwardian-set historomedy, the reluctant heir to an earldom is tired of attending his friends' weddings, especially since he's "unable to pass on the title," if you know what I mean. So he travels to America to attend college and falls in love with a career-minded waitress who teaches him how to slice cold cuts. If you know what I mean.
  

That took me five minutes tops, even with the typing. Plus you get the plots for free!

Your turn: What are some romantic comedy title mash-ups you can come up with?




*I think this is the actual plot of a Sherrilyn Kenyon novel.

TSS: Characters I'm Supposed to Hate but Actually Love

Hello, Sunday Saloners! I decided to go with something lighter this week, since I've been encountering a lot of characters in the past few weeks who are villains so awesome I kind of secretly root for them.

Do you have characters you know are loathsome but you still like them? Maybe the writer sets us up to sympathize with the devil, so to speak, or maybe there's just something about the character that you identify with. Either way, despite that fact that you know you're supposed to be rooting against the character because they do Bad Things, you find yourself disappointed when the story just kind of dumps in the dirt of Villain Hell and moves on.

• Lady Audley from Lady Audley's Secret--Lady Audley is pretty evil. But I have to admit a part of me was kind of rooting for her. Can anyone really blame her for taking advantage of the men who treat her like a child? If it wasn't for one action--which I still don't quite believe--I would have been happy to see her get away with it all.
  
• Brian de Bois-Guilbert from Ivanhoe--The book may be called Ivanhoe, but the character of Bois-Guilbert gets more page time and is more interesting than the hero. Despite the fact that Sir Brian participates in some questionable activity, he's really not a bad guy. His biggest mistake is falling for a woman who clearly isn't that into him.
  
• Julian from The Forbidden Game trilogy by LJ Smith (also: every bad boy character from every LJ Smith novel)--I picked Julian because he was the character I was most flabbergasted didn't wind up with the heroine--whatever her name was--but this could really go for any bad boy in any LJ Smith novel. They're always more interesting than the do-gooder heroes.
  
• George Wickham from Pride & Prejudice--Am I the only one who isn't convinced Wickham's that bad? Yes, I suppose by Mr. Highfalutin Darcy's standards he's super flighty, but maybe he just likes to have a good time and is misunderstood. I keep waiting and waiting for an Austen adaptation where Wickham's the hero and it never happens.
  
• Bananach from Wicked Lovely--Bananach is the embodiment of war and discord, but practically speaking she's what the Beatles would call a mixer. She likes stirring things up. And that's what keeps the books interesting! Plus I think she's really funny.
  
• Rumpelstiltskin from Once Upon a Time (yes, I know that's not a book, but it's a bookish character)--Rumple is the only person on this show who has any sense of humor. That's worth my loyalty right there. Plus he looks good in a suit.
  

And these are just the characters from the top of my head--I'm sure there are a lot more characters out there who are so bad they're good. What are some of your favorites?

TSS--Where to Find Edgy Books

A few weeks ago I was on twitter and over-"heard" a conversation about who is to blame for the homogeneity in current romance fiction: authors, readers, or publishing companies. To sum up part of the argument, authors can now self-publish, and potentially make more money doing so than they would with publishing companies; so if authors WANTED to write different types of stories, one would expect to see them self-published as eBooks, no? Yet the majority of self-published books follow the current trend in traditional publishing; ipso facto, homogeneity cannot be entirely (or even mostly) the publisher's fault. Either people aren't buying other types of romances, or authors aren't writing them.

To me this conversation reflects the age-old push and pull between the market and artistic expression. On the one hand, you want to make money. On the other hand, you have a vision for what you want to do with your work. Is it really reasonable to expect self-published authors to answer holes in the publishing market? Here are some of my thoughts:

• I'm not super-familiar with self-published works out there, but I do know there's a lot of them. Any person browsing for cheap eBooks on Amazon sees maybe 1% of what's been self-published, and most of what appears in the top 100 is by authors who are already established by traditional publishing. So judging how authors are pushing the boundaries of the genre through that lens may not be entirely fair. There are undoubtedly TONS of books that would never traditionally be published on Smashwords, Amazon, and B&N right now; but they're are hard to find because the authors don't show up at the top of the buy lists.
• Any writer worth their salt writes for an audience, but what is the audience for self-published work looking for? This is largely unclear, especially to writers just starting out. Publishing houses have marketing departments that not only find out what's selling, but tell people what to buy. An author by themselves has twitter, facebook, and their words. This reminds me of a post I wrote earlier this year about how publishing resembles the beginnings of modern art (post here). In that post, I mentioned the Salon des Refusés and how the artists who participated and become scions of modern art actually wanted to be part of the establishment. It took a generation after that Salon for artists to begin to identify and paint for an audience looking for independent alternatives to the Academy. I do think this idea of self-publishing being the place for pushing boundaries of a genre or experimenting comes from modern art. But if we look to self-publishing for the creative energy to drive literature, will traditional publishing become dinosaurs in the same way the Academies did?
• One of the things my students often come into class thinking, and which I try to disabuse them of, is that art is about self-expression. That may be true in our current society, but in fact most artists in history created art for other people. The Pope didn't tell Michelangelo he wanted him to express himself, he said, "Paint me a ceiling about the Bible, bitch." (Maybe not in those exact words, of course...) Michelangelo still managed to express himself in spite of what the market--which in this case was the Church--demanded. Innovation and self-expression usually happens in spite of the market, not because of it.

I don't really have a point here, but based on what I know of history, I think publishers DO deserve the majority of the blame for what's in the traditional market. Writers will write for the market, and if a publisher says they want to publish X, they will get submissions for it. Also, there is a market for everything--the internet and self-publishing proves that. It just may not be a large enough market for the Big 6 to put time and energy into it.

Tempted by the Words of Another

Do you cheat on the books you're reading?

You know what I mean, but just to make SURE you know what I know that you know what I mean, let me explain: there are two types of readers. One reads a single book at a time, finishes it, then moves on to the next one. The other type reads multiple books at the same time and is constantly switching them out.

Me, I'm the former. I read one book at a time. And if I decide to put that book down in favor of another book, well... it's pretty much over.

Basically, books are like mini-marriages. If I'm in, I am fully committed to reading this sucker and making the relationship work. But sometimes you just have to break it off for you own sanity. Also, if I'm reading two books at once, it's hard not to compare one to the other and be impatient with the not-as-good one, which is why I try to avoid the situation altogether. This happens to me even when I'm listening to audiobooks and reading another book. Sometimes I'm like, "Why aren't you that other book??"

For example, I'm trying to read two (well, three, but I don't usually count audiobooks) novels at the same right now, and it's not going well at all. I'm reading Great Expectations by Charles Dickens; and while it's good and even really funny, whenever I pick the book up I feel like I'm taking my medicine. Also, finishing it is taking FOREVER. But I don't want to stop reading GE because 1. it is really good; and 2. I want to write a review about it. So I decided to just read a little every day and also read a romance novel at night. But whenever I pick up the romance novel I'm just like, "Uhg, what," and can't concentrate on it because I don't feel fully committed to reading it. Clearly one of these books has got to go. But which one?



What about you--do you view books like a marriage or like an open relationship?

The Sunday Salon: Parallels Between Publishing Today and the Birth of Modern Art

Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt at the Louvre, 1879. Image courtesy of the Met.

We're studying impressionism in my art history course this week, and I couldn't help but notice some similarities between the art world during that time period and the publishing world today--specifically, the impact eBooks, self-published or otherwise, are having on publishing. For instance:

• Deskilling A common statement about modern art is that, "my five-year-old could do that." And when you compare a Pissarro to a Vermeer, the former does look pretty bad. But people don't care about skill! That much. They care more about the ideas behind the pieces and that they're something new and different. Similarly, self-published eBooks are often criticized for grammatical mistakes and lack of editing. But people don't care! I mean, I care, but if Fifty Shades is on the NYT Bestseller List obviously there are a lot of people who don't. They just want to read something new and different! But not too different, like different in the sense that you feel uncomfortable while reading it. Also, being really cheap or free helps. Moving on...
  
• Establishment vs the Salon des Refusés Whenever you have a system to evaluate the worth of something and promote that which is judged superior, there are going to be rejections and hurt feelings. However, in 1863, the Academy Salon in Paris rejected 3,000 pieces of art, far more than they ever had before. It was so extreme the French government sponsored a salon of the rejected work, which included what are now some of the most famous pieces of 19th century art. Basically all these young artists who set the groundwork for the crumbling of the Salon wanted to be let into the establishment in the first place. They didn't set out to tear the system down, but the Salon had become too conservative and didn't want to be shaken up by new ideas. Similarly, one of the complaints I hear from self-published authors are that the Big 6 publishers don't support mid-listers anymore, which is where most new authors would start out (keep in mind all my information is hearsay, and this may only be a few people's experience). It makes sense that, as the economy gets worse, publishers are buttoning down the proverbial hatches and not taking chances on lesser-known writers anymore; but where are those writers going to go? They'll probably self- or e-publish.
• Technology Impressionists are famous for painting scenes of modern life, not allegories with cupids or historic scenes. Their images included trains and factories, and they were interested in the latest and greatest technology, science, theories, and newspaper reports. I don't think one could say the total opposite was true of Salon artists of the same time period, but the work of artists like William-Adolphe Bouguereau, whom Degas and Monet believed would be the most famous artist of their generation (with more than a little disgust), definitely has a completely different sensibility. I.e., frolicking cupids. In a similar way, it seems like some publishers are being dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century--not just in their acceptance of eBooks, but also in their business models.

Obviously, none of these parallels are exact because we're looking at two different centuries, art forms, and cultures. But from my perspective as a reader, this is a very exciting time period in literature. The rules of how and what is being published are shifting rapidly, and that offers a great opportunity for writers to experiment, as well as an audience open to reading their work. Will we soon have the literary equivalent of modern art? Is Fifty Shades our generation's Impression: Sunrise?

Gawd. I hope not (but then I do confess I have a soft spot for Bouguereau).

Mystery Romances

Some people think that mystery and romance don't go together. But out of all the romances I've read, some of my favorites have a great mystery plot, and vice versa. Here are a few that spring to mind:

When Night Falls by Jenna Ryan (review here)

This time-travel romance is about two people who are trying to find Jack the Ripper. Although I liked the romance, what really kept me reading was the question of who the murderer was. There's a long list of suspects, each more likely than the last. The mystery runs out of steam before the end of the novel, but there was a twist I didn't see coming.

Captives of the Night by Loretta Chase

This novel is one of my most favorite romances of all time! Leila Beaumont is a woman artist in 19th-century Paris. Her husband, Francis, is in love with the mysterious Comte d'Esmond, who is in love with Leila; but she doesn't want anything to do with either of them. Then Francis is murdered and she and d'Esmond join forces to find his killer.

Aside from the characters and setting, the thing I love most about Captives of the Night is that the murder mystery is solid--it would be enough to carry the book just on its own. I had no idea who the murderer was until Leila and d'Esmond figured it out; and when they did, it was such an obvious solution I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it.



A Woman of Virtue and No True Gentleman by Liz Carlyle

Both of these novels contain very decent mysteries. In A Woman of Virtue, Cecilia, the heroine, is being stalked by a serial killer. I enjoyed this mystery more for the atmosphere than anything else. No True Gentleman is more of a proper mystery, with a very Bogart-and-Bacall chemistry between the hero and heroine.



There are also plenty of mystery novels with a strong romantic sub-plot. Some of my favorites:


The Gilded Age series by PB Ryan

This series takes place in Gilded Age Boston, with not-quite-lily-white governess, Nell Sweeney. Her partner in crime solving is the über-sketchy Dr. William Hewitt, the son of Nell's employer and the black sheep of the family. William survived in Andersonville Prison during the Civil War, while his elder brother died; and now dude's got some major problems, like drug addiction and gambling.

I love the relationship between Nell and Will in this series, and the kiss they share in the train station at the end of Murder In the North End was one of the best literary kisses I've ever read. I highly recommend these books!



Vicky Bliss mysteries by Elizabeth Peters

Vicky Bliss is an art historian who is involved with a dashing art thief, Sir John Smythe. An art historian and art thief--could there be a better partnership for dramatic potential?

Reading Group mysteries by DR Meredith

Megan Clark is a forensic archaeologist in Amarillo, Texas, who also happens to be a huge mystery fan. When people are murdered, she and her book club, Murder by the Yard, decide to investigate. The only voice of caution is Ryan, Megan's best friend.

Meredith has a history of May/December romances in her novels, and this is no exception. Ryan is 30+ years Megan's senior (if I remember correctly), and certain that she could never be attracted to an old geezer like himself. Megan, much like Brennan on Bones, remains oblivious. I loved the sweet romance between these two, but Meredith has an absolutely nasty habit of hitting the reset button on Megan and Ryan's relationship between one book and the next. Perhaps it's for the best that she stopped writing this series.



Do you have any favorite novels that cross over between mystery and romance?