From the Library

Tiger's Eye by Karen Robards
First published - 1989

back blurb:
He was the tawny, goldern-eyed king of London's Underworld. She was an aristocratic heiress, born to the satin sheets of an ancient family. Their two proud hearts struck a flame that would consume them both in the blaze of a love that no society could allow - and a passion tht neither could destroy

This is one I was particularly anxious to reread once I finished the 'libary'. It has been compared quite favourably to Dreaming of You, a book I have a wee bit of a fancy for.
I kind of see the similarities yet at the same time, this one is quite different from DOY.
Alec Tyron, the Tiger, is The crime boss in London. No crime is committed that he isn't in charge or aware of. When he hears about a kidnapping/murder being committed outside of London, he heads out there as this means someone has done something without his say so. He heads out to confront these traitors and ends up rescuing Isabella St. Just, the intended victim. He is injured by one of his own men and realizes that someone is trying to kill him. He heads back to London, Isabella in tow.
I enjoyed this book very much when I first read it years ago and I very much enjoyed it this time around. Alec makes a great hero. He is unapologetic for what and who he is. Like Derek Craven, he was raised in the depths of poverty and rose above his horrible beginnings to become a leader among his own kind. He is also ambitious and not content to remain as he is. He has learned to read and can pass as a member of quality. He is devastatingly handsome and very charming when he wants to be. And when he falls for Isabella, like Derek, he falls hard.
Isabella is a ditz. Now there are two kinds of ditzes. The annoying, wanna smack her kind, and the charming, you just have to love her ditz. Isabella falls into this kind. Although incredibly naive and innocent, she doesn't take guff from Alec. She will stand up with him toe to toe and not back down. In one very funny scene, she and Alec are holed up together while each is recovering from injuries. They have just done the deed when Pearl, Alec's sometime lover, calls to him from the other bed. When Isabella hears her and realizes Pearl is in the other room, she gives it to Alec and gives it to him good.
Now there is a catch to the furthering of their relationship. Isabella you see, is married. Married off to a man twice her age by her father, her husband has consigned her too the country while he lives in London after marrying her strictly for her money. There is also the very strong possibility that her husband is the one trying to kill her. Isabella feels great anguish and guilt over the fact that she is married. Normally this kind of thing would bother me, but the fact that she was never given a choice, that both her father and her husband virtually ignored her existence, and that one of them was most likely trying to do away with her, I could buy into it completely that she would develop such strong feelings for a charming rogue who rescued her.
It should be noted that this one is an Avon release - from back in the days when Avon still had the gumption to publish a book with a married heroine. And unlike some of the other covers that normally I don't like, that the inner me admits to not finding all that bad -I find this cover is atrocious! But the story inside is good - very good and I really recommend this book to those who enjoyed Dreaming of You.

Grade 4 out of 5

'til later

I can't believe I'm doing this

I really can't. I swore I never would! But ever since reading how Laurie has just discovered the joys that are the In Death books, I've had this urge to reread some. I was playing on the internet trying to decide whether I wanted to go to bed or not and I visited a soap site. Now I've noticed this actor before and from (and here's where the I don't believed I'm doing this part comes in) when I picture Roarke - this is who I imagine him as.





Now this is the first and last time I'm ever going to post on who I think should play whom - but being bored leads me to do things I don't normally do.

'til later

Here's a spot of good news

Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase seems to be experiencing a bit of a renaissance lately. There is an interesting interview with Ms. Chase at AAR. The interviewer doesn't ask the question I would be tempted to ask - Why the hell did you sign with Avon???? But then that is a bit of a rude one anyway *g*.
But what is the good news is that Avon has told Ms. Chase they plan to rerelease Lord of Scoundrels and The Last Hellion - About time I say.
This part did make me chuckle though. According to the article, they plan to repackage it.

Repackage it??? This is Avon we are talking about here.

For those who have never seen this book - this is the original cover from 1994 - 1994 keep in mind.



And for comparison here are a couple from 2006 - 2006! Twelve years later they are still recycling the same covers!!





But still - new packaging *snort* aside, it is very good news that this wonderful book and also The Last Hellion will (hopefully) soon be rereleased.

Now if only they will do the same with Bliss and Dance by Judy Cuevas/Judith Ivory I'll be a very happy camper!!

'til later

This cracked me up

And I needed a laugh after just baring my soul. Found the link on Darla's blog even though her donut sounded much better than a plain old glazed donut.

You Are a Glazed Donut

Okay, you know that you're plain - and you're cool with that. You prefer not to let anything distract from your sweetness. Your appeal is understated yet universal. Everyone dig you. And in a pinch, you'll probably get eaten.

What Donut Are You?

'til later

I think I've mentioned before that I have this 'thing' about opening mail - unless it's cards, boxes or something like that. Well - it's getting worse! I have a pile of it I tried to tackle this morning and I could feel the panic start to set in and the sweat begin on the back of my neck and I had to stop. I don't understand why I have it or what I'm going to do about it.
I've never liked opening mail - but now I have to. But there is this huge block!!! And it's a very difficult phobia to try and explain to anyone. They are going to say "just open it." Hell - I'm telling myself to "just open it!" But I can't seem too. And it's much more serious than not wanting to change lightbulbs - I can do that, or not wanting to blow up balloons. The balloon thing is easy to avoid. But there are BILLS in that pile. I don't have a problem paying them - just opening them.
This is crazy! This is nuts! What kind of crazy assed phobia is this? I get snakes or spiders. I'm not afraid of them but I do understand people who are. The same as flying. Lots of people have that one. I also have a fear of falling but I know I'm not alone on that one. But opeing mail???
Do I break down and tell Ryan that I can't open mail and could he come and do it for me? I could handle things if I do them that way. I checked the mailbox the other day and there was about 8 pieces of mail. I just about freaked. Seriously!!
Why would a (relatively) normal person experience this kind of thing?? Am I the only one? Is there a self-help group I could attend? I just know I have to do something - but I'm at a bit of a loss as to what that might be.

ETA

I've been thinking about this all day now - ever since I posted and then after reading the comments. I think this has been an unrecognized issue with me for a long time now. How does one confess a fear of opening mail? I think it's the real reason I haven't done my taxes in three years - I couldn't bring myself to open many of the T-4 type tax forms you get. I'd get them from the bank or my job or wherever and then not open them. I told myself it was because I didn't want to have to 'do taxes' at the end of the year - but that doesn't explain it really since I know I would be getting money back - last year I think quite a bit since I put a huge chunk into RRSP's. I mean cripes - I'm risking going to jail over this. Can you imagine me being thrown in the pen with women who have been arrested for prostitution or drug dealing and having one of them asking me "what are you in for" and having to "say not opening mail"???? It would be humiliating! I never open tax receipts for charitable donations I've made over the years. And that also might explain why I haven't opened home/auto insurance policies that have come in the mail for quite some time. I think it was even a factor in why I bombed so badly in my previous job. There were other factors too of course, but opening mail on an ongoing basis was part of it. But now that Ron isn't here - it's really come to a head. And I think it has been magnified even more by grief. And I think Ron - while not understanding completely- had an idea that there was something not quite right. That's why he asked Ryan to help out with this kind of thing before he died. He would get home from work and always check the mail. Now I have to do it myself and in the past couple of days, even that has become harder to do - not only not opening it - but even checking to see if we have any!
I'm not ready yet to admit this 'thing' to Ryan yet. But I did just call Lisa to see if she could help me. She's going to come over on Saturday and we will go through it together. I think I rather startled her though. She said to put it into one pile and we would go through it on Saturday. I asked if I should include just recent mail or also mail I've gotten going back over the past 3 years that I haven't opened. I have bags of it. Being the pack rat I am, I haven't thrown any of it out.
I have a feeling this Saturday will be much harder than spending the day building bookcases.

From the Library

I seem to be in a bit of a slump again as far as new books go, but I can still read some of my old favourites. Since there are so many new bloggers and readers of romance I thought I'd review some of my oldie but goodies - now that they are "out of the box". I'm starting with this one because I brought it up when I highlighted some of my favourite pirate romances. It called me - it really did - and said "read me." Well - when a book does that, you really have no choice. I've mentioned more than once that this is one of my favourite futuristics but it's been a few years since I've actually read it - so here goes

The Skypirate by Justine Davis

back blurb:

A LEGENDARY ROGUE OF THE GALAXY - AND HIS BEAUTIFUL CAPTIVE
He is Dax, the skypirate hunted to the ends of the universe by the cruel interstellar Coalition. He has survived the destruction of his planet, but he can't escape the demons haunting his soul - or the allure of the woman captive who wears the notorious golden golden slave collar.

She is Captain Califa Claxton, once the Coalition's top battle strategist. Only a great cosmic irony has her rescued by Dax, the Coalition's deadliest enemy. Although she knows secrets that can make him triumphant, he posses the collar controller which can break her will. But his touch alone arouses her passion. If she can gain his trust, a chance to destroy the Coalition together awaits them among the stars. And in the white heat of their explosive union a new bond may be forged - souls joined by a maginifcent love!
(whoever comes up with these blurbs sure does go heavy on the cheese don't they?)
This is the second of a two book series. The first one - Lord of the Storm - tells the story of a fabled planet Trios and how it was raided and destroyed by the evil coalition. The hero was the Triotian prince who had been made into a slave and the heroine was a pilot in the coalition who met, fell in love with and rescued the Triotian prince. He had been owned by the heroine of Skypirate - Califa.
This one takes place several years later. Califa has been made a gold collar slave herself. It is thought by the Coalition that she had knowledge of Dare and Shayla - the hero/heroine of the previous book. When the story opens, she is a prisoner along with another female, Rina, who had been captured cheating in a card game. When Rina, a member of the Dax's crew is rescued, he takes Califa along with him, not knowing who she is. Dax and Calipha dance around each other but both are very attracted to the other. Dax makes such a wonderful hero!!! One of the best. He still feels very guilty that he wasn't around when his planet was destroyed and does whatever it takes to do his part to take down the Coalition. Califa was a nasty piece of work in the first book and because Ms. Davis is such a talented writer, she does a remarkable job in not only redeeming her but makes her a sympathetic character that you actually root for. I really enjoy Lord of the Storm, but I like this one just a wee bit better. Unlike LOTS, in this one we get the point of view of both Dax and Califa. She really makes us feel the pain that Dax does on thinking he is one of the last of his kind and the depth of anguish he feels.
This is one heck of a good book and I know it's a favourite of many. For those who haven't read it, I highly recommend it. I wish Ms Davis were still writing books like this. It's a real loss for us readers that she isn't anymore! And to be honest - considering it was published in 1995 - I even kind of like the cover *ducking*

Grade: 5 out of 5

I haven't updated my recent buys in ever so long!! There have been a bunch - here are just a few of them



Lord of the Beasts - Susan Krinard - some of hers really work for me - some not so much. Hopefully this will be one that works.


A Reason to Live by Maureen McKade - finally found this one! A Western *sigh* And it's been getting rave reviews.


What a Gentleman Wants by Caroline Linden - I've heard good things about her previous book


An Unexpected Pleasure by Candace Camp - I've recently rediscovered her and wondered why I "lost" her. She's very good.


True Blood by Patria Waddell - I read another futuristic by her, enjoyed it and wanted to read this one. Besides - I really like the cover


O'Rourke's Bride by Barbara Dan - bought this one on pure spec. The hero is a down on his luck Irish actor and it takes place in the west. How could I resist. Add in the price and it seems like a great deal.

And on a side note - why or why did I let myself get hooked on Dancing with the Stars????

'til later

I'd Hammer out Danger, I'd Hammer out Warning!!!

To be honest, I'm not so sure I should be posting tonight. I went over to my neighbours to watch some movies and I had 2 beers and 4/4 fingers of Irish Whisky so I might seem a little scrambled. 4/4 you ask??? Well, I apparently had 3/4 of a finger and my neighbour's husband talked me into going for that fourth finger.

Anyway on with the continuing saga of

cue the music

Kristie and Lisa - Bookshelf Assemblers

The last Saturday was a bust as Lisa had been having car "issues" and didn't want to drive the 45 minutes into the big city so Kristie went to visit Lisa. But even though they didn't build or assemble bookshelves last week, that didn't mean that Kristie wasn't working on Project Library. Indeed, she had been haunting Walmart looking for the perfect half shelf bookcases. As previously mentioned, she bought out the Maple line - 3 times. She now had 6 bookshelves ready to assemble. Now in case you haven't picked up on this yet, Kristie is not very good a certain things. Building and assembly is one of them. Anything techie like is another. Before Lisa arrived, Kristie decided to update her Windows. She had been getting this message for quite some time when she turned on her computer to "click on this link to update." She finally decided to go with it this morning. Big mistake!!! She updated fine, but when she rebooted her computer, she lost her internet connection. Now this is a BIG thing for Kristie as she is VERY DEPENDANT on her internet. She NEEDS the connection, the friends she has made online. To be cut off from them is a VERY SERIOUS matter to Kristie. She called her internet provider for help. And thus ensued a conversation that she is sure is going to make it's way onto the 'net sometime as one of those hilarious jokes that everyone laughs at and thinks "can anyone really be that clueless?". Yes, sadly, Kristie IS that clueless.

Cable guy: (anyone who has visited this blog for a while may remember cable guy. This time though, cable guy is someone different without the sense of humour to suggest she break into her neighbours house - the same neighbours who fed her whisky and beer tonight!)
This is "John" how may I help you?

Kristie: Yes, I installed a Windows update and now I can't seem to get onto the internet.

Cable guy: Can you give me your name and address and I'll try and help you.

Kristie gives the information requested

Cable guy: Well, it looks like your connection has become loose or something

Kristie: I don't think that's it. I was on the internet before I updated Windows and I didn't touch anything.

Cable guy: Well, it might have happened. Either that or when you updated Windows, the internet card was damaged. Unhook your cable from the modem and hook it back in again.

At this point panic began to set in for Kristie!

Kristie: I'm not sure what the cable connection is.

Cable guy: It's the black cord.

Kristie feels the sweat begin at the back of her neck and gets down on her hands and knees and begins to look around. She finally spots a black cord and unplugs it, waits a few moments and plugs it back in.

Kristie: But if it's the Network card, what do I do?

Cable guy: If that's what it is, then you will have to take the computer into a service shop as we don't support that kind of thing.

At this moment, the meltdown is beginning.

Cable guy: But let's see if it's something else first. Try disconnecting the black cord, wait 30 seconds and plug it back in.

Kristie: OK, I did that but nothing seems to be happening and the internet still has a black X.

Cable guy: Do you see a green light come on?

Kristie: No, I don't see any lights at the back of this at all. All I see are a bunch of different things going into the back of it.

Cable guy: M'am, I believe you unplugged something on the CPU. I told you to disconnect the black cable on the modem.

Kristie is now entering full panic mode and the meltdown is in full swing.

Kristie: Oh - right. But I don't know where the modem is?!?!?

Cable guy: It's the black box m'am.

Kristie: (looking around) I don't see any black box.

Cable guy: It's the black box with lights on it.

Kristie has melted down completely now. She has no idea what a modem is and the thought of being without her internet connection has completely destroyed her.

Kristie: I don't know what a modem is. I don't understand what you are talking about!! I'm going to have to hang up now because I'm really starting to get upset. I'm going to have to wait until someone else comes over and call you back.

Cable guy (in a soothing tone) : That's fine m'am. You just do that. You have someone else call in a little while.

I swear to all that is holy, that the above story is true!!!

Fortunately for Kristie, besides being the "idea person" of Kristie and Lisa, Lisa's job is a "network administrator" (although if Kristie has this wrong, hopefully Lisa will report in and say what it is she really does) Kristie just knows Lisa works with all kinds of computer stuff and will be able to sort things out. But Kristie is also aware that she sounded and acted like a complete dufus and is just waiting for this conversation which is recorded to appear somewhere and people with laugh and laugh and laugh!

Kristie battled to calm her panic while she waited for Lisa to arrive. She dusted, she vacumed, she listened to Great Big Sea and while she did this, the panic began to recede. Finally Lisa arrived and Kristie tried to explain what had happened just a short while earlier. Lisa raised her eyebrow, went into the computer room, turned on the computer and within 5 minutes solved the problem. Kristie kissed Lisa on the cheek. Now they were ready for the real task ahead. Assembling shelves.

At this point, the assembling of shelves is rather anticlimatic. It went well. The two of them quickly assembled four shelves and began loading books onto the 2 shelf bookcases. It soon became apperant however, that two shelf bookcases would not hold a bin of books. At this point it was 6 bookcases and 6 bins of books. Lisa came up with the brilliant idea of adding another shelf to the bookcases. This would work as the shelves were adjustable. Of course, this also meant another trip to a lumber store to purchase lumber for the extra shelves!. They proceeded to the smaller, family type lumber store that had been such help to them earlier - even though they didn't have pink hammers. Low and behold, they had lumber that was the same size as the bookshelves. Things were going remarkably well for our intrepid bookshelf builders! They purchased the lumber along with a few other "hardware" type supplies and were on their way. Again things went swimmingly well. The "library" is now almost complete. The only thing needed is a couple more bookshelves that will hold the books that are currently in Kristie's TBR pile. But there is no rush for them as Kristie is in a reading slump again.
So for your viewing pleasure - "The Library"



Hopefully, you can see her love of the seafaring adventure romances and note the three ships and lighthouses on the top of the shelves!





Unfortunately, Kristie is a very bad photographer and was still rather traumatized from the "cable guy" experience. Although she took many more pictures, none of the other ones she took on the digital camera turned out. She did take quite a number of a "normal" camera though, and hopefully they will turn out much better.

'til later

*update*

Ryan came by today and wanted his camera back *sigh*. He had plugged the cable into the back of the CPU. When I followed the (black) cable to where it was plugged in, I realized that was what I pulled out and plugged back in, in an effort to get the internet working. I guess that explains why it didn't work *grin*

Etcetera time

Well - we're a week into the new fall television season. I'm always leery of starting to watch new television shows. Because once you start watching them, they often get cancelled. I have this habit of getting too involved in favourite shows. I'm still suffering from the end of The Highlander (although there is a new movie coming out - sometime! I'll have a chance to get a new Duncan MacLeod fix). I was devastated when they cancelled The Guardian - and just when Nick was starting to mellow *sigh*. (note to self - rent the movie Something New)
But for every cancelled show, there are those ones that "take" such as Grey's Anatomy (confession time here - I watched my first episode ever just this week. I'm thinking I'll have to rent the DVD's to catch up) or Lost - and you know how eager I am for it too return.

But there is one new show that has caught my attention already. Men in Trees. I didn't think I would like it; in fact I'm not even sure why I started watching it. I think (thought) Anne Heche was a bit of a nut job. But this show is delightful!! It's quirky and it's funny. The writing is superb and the characters are charming - including the character Ms. Heche plays. If you check the link - it gives a very good overview of the show.

So I hope this one clicks and stays on the air so I don't get disappointed. It's a very good show

Friday nights at 9:00.

So does anyone else have a new show that's grabbed their attention? Something that will actually pull them away from books?

And on an entirely different note - for those breathlessly waiting for Anne Stuart's newest Cold as Ice (Cindy), I just noticed there is an excellent review of it at Romance Reader at Heart.

'til later

My theory works again!!!!

I happened to glance further into one of my closets last night and spied a bag. When I opened it up -Ta Da!!!! It was filled with books, many of them (including To Die For) the books that were missing. I think I still must have another bag someplace else since this one didn't have all the missing books. But it just proved that as long as I don't look too hard and stress about it too much - whatever is missing will show up.
Now of course this theory works only for people like me who are pack rats by nature. Before I throw anything out, I double check and triple check to see if I'm never, ever going to use it again. I also do this when I turn in books to UBS's. I often end up turning in only half the books I set off with.

Speaking of UBS's - hmm I think I might make me a trip to one today. I have quite a few :)
Only problem is, I seem to have hit a slump again after my recent binge. *sigh*

And I wonder why it is that even though we have tons of books TBR (such as 2 three door plastic cabinets and a bin full) the quest for even more becomes uncontrollable until we run out the door half crazed in search of more????????

'til later

Various & Assorted

I bought another half bookcase today. That makes six of those puppies now. The price at Walmart is very good and Lisa and I figured six of them should be enough to house the rest of my books. Of course that doesn't include the other bin full of them and the 2 plastic three door carts that I have upstairs that hold my TBR pile. I'm not sure Lisa knows about them. She will shortly though. She has taken to reading my blog since I started telling about our bookshelf building adventures. Being a NON-romance fan she has mostly skipped it up until recently.
The bookshelves come in three different woods, mahogany, birch and maple. I've been sticking to the maple ones so they will all be the same. I've bought them at three different times - buying out the lot of maple when I see them. I can't help but smile to myself when I picture whoever stocks them on the shelves scratching their heads and wondering what is so popular about the maple ones. I must stop though. I'm starting to become obsessed about buying bookcases now. And while the price is good, it's a heck of a lot more expensive than just a simple book. I could buy 3 mm books and a Harlequin with the price of one bookshelf.

So Saturday is the planned day to move to Phase Two - "Kristie and Lisa - Bookshelf Assemblers". Thank goodness no saws will be needed for this phase although I'm not sure about hammers. At least I have one now in case we need it!

I think I've misplaced a box or bag or two of them though. I know some of my favourites are missing. It's amazing (and rather frightening) that of all the books I have, I still know when some of them are missing. And, being the compulsive person that I can be about some things, I know I won't rest until I either find the missing ones or replace them. And if I have to replace some of them, they are going to be darned hard to get hold of. Which brings me to another one of my "quirks".

When I loose something, I don't really look for it. Because if I loose something and look for it and can't find it - then I know it's lost and I get upset. Wierd kind of thinking I know. But I tell myself, if I don't really look for it, then it will turn up when least expected. This wacky theory worked when it came to my prescription sunglasses. I mentioned earlier that they went missing for months. I looked for them, but not very hard. Instead I figured they would show up somewhere eventually. And sure enough they did several weeks ago on the rainy Saturday on the floor on the backseat of my car. Lisa is rather puzzled by this theory of mine and just shakes her head when I try to explain it. I figure this is what will happen with the missing books. They will just show up sometime - probably after I get the whole lot of them alphabetized and then I'll have to go buy another maple bookcase at Walmart and start all over again.
And speaking of hammers - did anyone check out the neat link Nicole posted in the comments not too long ago? Those tools are just To Die For! (Get it? ha ha - and one of the missing books by the way). I checked out the whole website and thought "what a hoot of an idea!" I'm not one to throw 'parties', but if I were - this would be the one to have. Much different than Tupperware.
Anyway - it's 2:00 in the morning now and I suppose I should get to bed. I will as soon as I remove Her Highness - Zina Princess Warrior Cat




(I'm really going to hate giving Ryan back his camera)


'til later

I started the creative writing course I signed up for on Monday night. I'm not sure it's such a good idea. One of the exercises we have to do is sit in front of a computer or a notebook and free write for five minutes then slowly increase it to half an hour. We're supposed to write whatever thoughts come into our head. I've been doing this for the past couple of nights and it's been very painful. When I write in my blog, I control what I'm writing but when I do this free writing it's all thoughts of Ron and how much I miss him, how my heart is breaking and how much my life has been changed.
For the most part, I seem to be doing OK. But I don't know if I really am or not. When I slow down and just sit, I feel the void so deeply. And I hurt so much.
One of my 'quirks' if you will, is opening mail. For some reason I just don't like opening it. Cards are OK - I can tell what they are by the size of the envelope. And boxes are always fun to open. But bills and anything official, I'd just as soon not open. You wouldn't believe the stack of mail I haven't bothered opening. In my more rational moments, it's rather frightening. Ron knew this about me and asked Ryan to kind of take over a lot of those things. But I can't really tell my 26 year old son that I have this "thing" about not wanting to open mail so now I have to do it myself.
One of the things Ron did was take care of all the bills - because I wouldn't open them. I got a bill in the mail today and when I opened it, it was the fourth overdue notice on something I had no idea what it was. Ron went over a lot of the bills with me and showed me how he paid them on-line, but this was one I had never seen before and I had no idea what it was. Thankfully there was a phone number on it, so I called to see who they were and what the bill was for and to explain why it hadn't been paid. It turned out that it was the company that we rent the hot water heater from and the bill had been outstanding since June. Luckily it wasn't for very much at all and the woman on the phone was very understanding when I explained things to her. She even helped me set it up to pay online. See - I had to do that all over again because Ron and I dealt with different banks.
There was another piece of mail that was addressed to Ron that came a couple of days ago. I finally opened it today. When I did, I just kind of shook my head. It was from the bank that he dealt with for years - that I've been dealing with since he died - and they know that, informing him that he qualified for a Visa Platinum Gold card. Yea, I thought it was kind of funny in a bizare, dark humour kind of way. I think Ron would have been amused too.
But between that and the memories that are coming out with the writing, it's bringing home again what losing Ron really means.
So once again it's staying up late at night because I can't get to sleep.
I don't know if I can keep up with the writing course or not. I guess I'll just have to see.

Shiver me timbers mate

For those what aren't in the know - this here be "talk like a pirate day" . Suisan - it's your day!





And this here be my favourite pirate - Cap'n Jack Sparrow of The Black Pearl


And these here be some of my favourite pirate books


Til Dawn Tames the Night by Meagan McKinney, this is a worn, oft read book. Who can forget the banana scene - or the tatoo?


Once a Pirate by Susan Grant, this is the first book she wrote. Not only is it a thrilling pirate book, it's also a time travel.


The Pirate King by Gaelen Foley, this is also her first book. Took me a while to track it down, but I did and it was worth the effort!


The Prince by Elizabeth Minogue, this is one I don't remember any one else talking about. But it was a wonderful book!


The Pirate Lord by Sabrina Jeffries, this is another most excellent pirate book.


The Iron Rose by Marsha Canham, this is a switch. It's the heroine who is the cut throat pirate. Another fine entry into the pirate genre. Marsha, Marsha, Marsha - why don't you come back to writing and give us the brothers stories


Across a Moonlit Sea again by Marsha Canham, this one is about the parents of Juliet from The Iron Rose - both pirates they be.


Beyond Paradise by Elizabeth Doyle, this is my most recently read pirate book. And what a joyful discovery this one was!!! Thanks to Mailyn and Dance chica for reviewing it!


The Windflower by Laura London. What would a discussion about pirate books be without this one? Probably one of the finest ever written. Hands up - who among us who has read it isn't still hoping to get Cat's story one day? No hands not up? Didn't think so.

So - you pirate lovers - go forth and talk like a pirate today!!

'til later

ETA


For those who prefer their pirate books set a little more into the future - I was in "the library" and found this one :)

And here's an interesting site to get your pirate name

signing off again

Mad Ethel

Recent Reads

Ahhh - you have no idea how good it is to say that!!!

All U Can Eat by Emma Holly
I've read Emma Holly's historicals. I quite liked Beyond Seduction but didn't care so much for Beyond Innocence. I've yet to read her paranormals and this is the first contemporary of her's that I've tried. I don't think it will be the last if she writes more. I think her previous books are more erotica than romantica and I like the HEA. I had read other positive reviews of AUCE and was looking forward to reading it. (Thanks Tara). I'm now joining the ranks of readers who like this one.
From the back blurb:

Frankie Smith's longtime boyfriend just left her for another woman. But she doesn't have much time to nurse her broken heart - her diner is as popular as ever, and the people of Six Palms want their appetites satisfied...
When the body of a weathy local woman is discovered in a nearby alley, Frankie's troubles sudenly don't seem so terrible. That is, until she realizes she's one of the Chief Jack West's prime suspects. The truth is, Jack's attraction to the sexy proprietor of All U Can Eat is all-consuming - though he knows hauling her into police custody isn't going to iprove his chances to catch her eye.
What neither of them realize is that this little town is full of secrest, some of which would shock even Six Palm's raciest residents. Determined to clear her name - and to get to know the ultra-responsible police chief better - Frankie joins Jack and a few other dishy locals, on a roller-coaster ride of an investigation. As the twists and turns unfold. letting go of their inhibitions begins to seem like the most natural thing in the world....

I was very pleasantly surprised at the amount of character development in this book. This is one hot book (very, very hot) but despite the numerous sex scenes, Ms. Holly created realistic characters. Frankie was great. Although she had been hurt by Troy, her boyfriend of five years, she still was able to be friendly with him. And I really liked the intriguing character of Mike. While I was reading about those two, although I knew Jack was the guy she would end up with, I quite liked her and Mike. I thought the mystery was quite well done. I never guessed who it was. All in all, I really liked this one.

Grade: 4 1/2 out of 5



Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh
I'm sure everyone knows by now that this is the one that The Two Ja(y)nes of Dear Author picked for their experiment. And they made a most excellent choice!!! There are a number of reviews popping up on this one now that we are finding it in the stores so I won't do a rehash of the storyline. Instead I'll just go with what worked for me. I loved the character of Sascha Duncan. She is a member of the Pys class in a rather alternate kind of universe. The Pys pride themselves on feeling no emotion but Sashca is different. She feels things and is terrified she will be discovered and sent for "rehabilitation", a process that would pretty much make her a vegetable. And one of the things she feels most is an attraction to Lucas Hunter, the "alpha" of the Darkriver clan and a "Changeling" another class. Lucas is also a wonderful character. Very alpha, he is still tender and loving and protective of those he loves. As he works with Sascha on a project between the two classes and tries to discover the serial killer who has been stalking the Changleling class, he discovers that there is much more to Sascha than he thought. The only problem I had with this one is I got pretty confused towards the end of the book when she goes on the Pys net in order to help Lucas. But once I just decided not to try and analyze and just enjoy - that's what I did. Now with everyone else, I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this different and intriguing world.

Grade: 4 out of 5


Lawless by Patricia Potter
Now that I have unpacked so many of my babies I haven't seen in years, I'm going to start a reread marathon. With talk of the Western around Blogland, I figured this one would be a good book to start with. This is one I always recommend even though I haven't read it for a while. And now that I have, I know how right I am to do so *g*. From the back blurb:

Her name was Willow...Strong and determined, she survived in a tough land, taking on the challenges of the Wild West as she worked her ranch with the small band of outcasts she claimed as her family. There was nothing she couldn't handle on her own - until a silent and mysterious gunman came to town and haunted her with his piercing gaze and his fiery touch....
His name was Lobo...The notorious Apache-raised gunslinger was hired to scare a lady rancer off her land using his dangerous reputation and his cold eyes - and worse, if it was necessary. He thought it would be the easiest bounty he'd ever earned until he came face-to-face with Willow Taylor. No woman had ever touched his heart before, and now Lobo faced the toughest challenge of all. Did he dare to reveal his true self to this spirited, giving woman?

What can I say? I love Westerns and I LOVE THIS BOOK!. I love everything about it! Even the cover doesn't bother me - maybe because it was first published in 1991, before this kind of cover started bothering me. Willow is a wonderful heroine. She is a teacher who creates a family out of strays. Ms. Potter manages to make each character come so alive. And Lobo! Ahhhhh what a wonderful hero he is. He doesn't want to take on the job he is hired for because he was lied to and it involves scaring women and children. He thinks he is cold and unfeeling - that's the way he has had to be because of his heartbreaking past. But he finds himself, much to his dismay, helping Willow and her family. The humour is gentle and heartwarming in these scenes. And although it isn't that explicit, the heat between Lobo and Willow just sizzles. Even though this is a reread and I know how it ends, I found myself rooting so much for their seemingly impossible HEA. There are also a couple of secondary romances in the book that have just enough to them that they are satisfying yet they don't take away from the main romance between Lobo and Willow. I love the storyline of the tough gunslinger being brought low by his love of the heroine - and this is one of the best!! This books is simply wonderful!

Grade: 5 out of 5


'til later

Headed out for the country

Lisa's car is sick and needs repairs so instead of working on the bookshelves this weekend, I'm headed out to her place momentarily.
Hopefully I'll get some reading done. Books were of course the first thing I pack and I think I have eight of them in my bag. Eight for an overnight visit - yea, that should be enough I hope. You know you need to take spares just in case the first few don't grab you!
I have a couple of paranormals, a couple of westerns, a RS or two and a historical and a medieval. If one doesn't work, the next one should.

'til later

If nothing else, I'm consistent!

I went to another concert tonight. Know who I saw?



Great Big Sea (they have clips on their website it your curious about why I'm so nutty about them)

Yep - went to see them again. You may recall I last saw them in the spring. But since they are such a fun group, I could see them anytime. Tonight was a bit different. They were playing outdoors as a headline act at our local fair. The tickets weren't too expensive and it got us into the fair for free so all in all a good deal! I'm not sure how to explain their music. It ranges from old folk tunes to pop music. They're a very lively band and very hard not to sing and clap along with. There was a young girl sitting in the row right ahead of us who couldn't sit in her seat. Normally this wouldn't bother me, but she was rather a tall girl and when she stood up, it was very hard to see around her. Plus she was bouncy. Very bouncy. I kept waiting for her to throw her hip out or something but since she was young I guess she didn't have to worry about stuff like that.
Now the person sitting beside me was a different kettle of fish - no, not the friend I went with - the person on the other side of me. He barely moved a muscle through the whole concert and would clap in a rather lackluster way after each song. With his decided lack of enthusiasm I couldn't figure out why he was even there! I guess it must have been the free pass into the fair.
My friend and I, we didn't stand up that much except for the last few songs although I wanted to be as bouncy as the girl in front of me - well, maybe not quite that energetic - I would for sure have done some damage. The accoustics weren't quite as good as they were in an indoor concert but since I have the lyrics all memorized, I could sing along with them anyway. And thankfully no one could hear as I don't make angels stop and listen when I sing. They might stop but it would only be to cover their ears. And I clapped along quite a bit, so much so that my hands are still sore.
But - it was a very good time. I ate fair junk food and even got some cotton candy to bring home with me. And I got some great prints that I plan to frame and put up somewhere.







Aren't they just gorgeous? I would have liked some with a nice guy fairy in there too but they didn't have any. I do have a nice wedding type picture between fairies but it's too big to scan. Looks like he is a king fairy and she's a princess fairy and there is a nice castle in the background. So these other ones can be the fairy godmothers. See - I can get a bit loopy this time of night. I'm still feeling the adrenaline rush from the concert.

In other news - I'm still reading!! I'm starting Slave to Sensation and while not very far into it yet, it's great so far!!

'til later

And the winner is.............

Do not read any further is you are in a different time zone that hasn't aired the last Rock Star Supernova yet

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And man was I some upset!!!! No, no not because he won!!! I finally made up my mind after last night that I liked him the best.
One of the biggest beefs I have about living in Canada is the Canadian channels "take over" the American channels if programs are running at the same time. This especially bothers me at Super Bowl time. We miss all those cute commercials. On tonights episode - hello! - the Finale! Global took it over and showed a different episode or something for the first half hour. Then there was a commercial and when it went back to the program, it was in the middle of Lukas song and Magni was gone!! We here in Canada missed the whole first half of the show!!!!


'til later

Trying this again

At Tara's suggestion, I went in to Hello and resized the pictures. I think you can see some of my babies better now. I think (hope - am crossing my fingers) that if you click on the pictures then they are much bigger.


This first one is still while they are in the box










These are just a few of the Lisa Kleypas books





And ahhhh - my Jo Goodman books



And here we have a few Penelope Williamson books and some by Theresa Weir. Ah dearlings - I missed you.
So hopefully this works and you get a better view of some of the scads and scads of books I have :)

'til later