American Idol

If you live on the West Coast


DO NOT READ UNTIL TOMORROW






But if you don't.......

I am bummed. I am really bummed.

I know that they Give Back, but I won't be around to see it anymore this season. I am now boycotting it for the rest of the season.

How could they?

How could America?

How could they NOT give him another week.

It is with a Heavy Heart I say farewell to my favourite

*heavy sigh*


Michael Johns





Hopefully he has a CD out - I will buy it!!!!

*Exclusive Review* One Foot in the Grave

Cat is back! I have been waiting to say that statement for months because in a few weeks, Jeaniene Frost’s second book in her Night Huntress series will be out. One Foot in the Grave is one of the best sequels I have read in a long time. I was very lucky to have found out about Jeaniene Frost (Thanks Christine!) late last year and it wasn’t just because the heroine is redhead and her name is Catherine. Jeaniene has written a new super-heroine that can play as dirty as the boys and won’t take the injustices of life sitting down. The only other character I can compare her to in recent memory are Anita Blake from Laurel K. Hamilton or Eve Dallas from JD Robb. Cat Crawfield is quickly becoming one of my all time favorite heroines and tied for best heroine of 2008 with Jax from Grimspace.

One Foot in the Grave takes place four years into the future. Cat is no longer that naive, uncontrollable girl with a chip on her shoulder. Cat has grown into a sharp and intelligent woman who still kicks ass and comes up with the best comebacks and one-liners you can imagine. Cat is still a bit down on herself in terms of self-esteem and still thinks of herself as an outcast. She has become the head of an undercover group that works for the government. Even thought she was basically blackmailed into taking this position, she has fought very hard to be in control and the “go to” person in almost every situation that arises. Cat is half-human, half-vampire, and the department she works for is comparable to Homeland Security but for watching and experimenting on vampires. The powers that be want to know where vampires come from and how they can be stopped. Cat has major issues with her undead side since her father was one of them and she was led to believe by her mother that she is a child of rape. In Halfway to the Grave, Cat hated her vampire side, now she is more comfortable in her skin and embraces it in a way. And the reason she does is due to her vampire lover she had to leave behind, Bones.

Cat has a hard time giving and receiving love, but when it came to Bones she was a goner. Cat has a lot of questions about her lost love. Has Bones wandered the world looking for her? Has he totally forgotten her and gone onto shagging another lonely girl? Could Bones be dead? All these questions will be answered in ways you will not believe! I guess you can say it is not much of a spoiler since Cat and Bones are the ultimate couple, so you can expect to see him make an appearance. And with his appearance, Cat is yet again launched in uncharted waters. Bones realizes how great and special Cat is. He wants what is best for her. But Cat has this habit of constantly questioning herself. She wants Bones just like the air she breathes, but won’t fall for his charms. (HA! See how long that lasts). But Bones knows her so very well. Bones may come across as a witty playboy type of guy, but he has great insight on a person.

One Foot in the Grave has quite a few twists and gasps that I did not see coming. The last 30 pages will certainly through you for a loop and I even found myself clapping at one point, which I never do when I read a book. Every thing comes out with a bang and you will meet some over the top characters that will make you laugh till your stomach hurts.

Jeaniene Frost has done three incredible things with this book that makes it a winner in my eyes. I have never laughed so hard as I have done while read One Foot in the Grave. I did not chuckle, but had full belly laughs from the zingers and one-liners throughout. There is one such scene where Cat and Bones’s old girlfriend from way in the past have a full blown out catfight that almost had me on my feet. (Hard to do when you are on a bus coming home from work and all you want to do is cheer) These two women don’t just use fists but use words to hurt and draw blood.

The other thing Jeaniene can do very well is write a good quality love scene. I am not talking about quantity as we see in so many romances where an author must fill up the pages with every sex act known to man. I am talking about an intimate moment between our couple that will have you reaching for a fan and sighing in wonderment. Jeaniene has even placed a certain sex act between Bones and Cat that didn’t make me cringe like I usually do when I read such one. For an author to write such a scene that can make me go back and re-read it and still want to sigh all over again is a great achievement in my eyes. And let’s not forget the sex is slammin’, in your face hawt!

And finally, I usually prefer the hero over the heroine or visa-versa. I cannot do that with Bones and Cat because they are a near perfect duo. They are much like Roark and Eve in the In Death series for me. And Roarke and Eve are my all time favorite romantic couple and I find Bones and Cat coming in a close second.

One Foot in the Grave is an excellent, paranormal urban fantasy that did not disappoint in the least. Jeaniene tightened up certain problems I had with Halfway to the Grave and wrote a story that is fast and furious. I am placing this in my top three of 2008.

4.5 stars out of 5!

**And as a special treat, Jeaniene was kind enough for me to pick her brain. Look for her interview to be posted next week**

Katiebabs

Kristie does vampires

OK - I don't mean in that way of course! Now if Richard Armitage were to play a vampire though.....

But Ames and I have a discussion of Kiss of Midnight by Lara Adrian up at Breezing Through

America's Book Quiz

Yahoo just posted an article on America's favorite reads.

Can anyone guess what is America's favorite book is to read? You may be surprised by the answer.

As for the second favorite for adults, it is the book that introduced me to the romance genre:

Gone With the Wind

Katiebabs (KB)

Last Night's AI

Not a surprise here if you are a regular reader of this blog and remember a few weeks ago a video I posted, but this was my favourite last night on American Idol.

For those who missed it or don't watch it, I really enjoyed this one (though Michael Johns is still my fave)

Our Newest Crusader*****UPDATE***** Yet another Crusader!

Well, we have us another one! C2/CSquared, who won a copy watched it, loved it and wants to know the best thing we thought about it.
How can we put it into words?

**********

And another one gone, and another gone, and another one gone for this show!!

Ag of In My Books has just reported in. And amazingly, she reported in tomorrow - today. At least here it's today. Where she is, it's tomorrow.

She's also posted a great video courtesy of YouTube that I haven't seen. I know - hard to believe I haven't seen them all isn't it?

And the Penguin Gods Were Very Kind

They gave me this...
So I give you all this:

First Line:
"The Wizard was back."

...review to come soon...

Katiebabs

Late to the Tudor party

I was hoping to have something scintilating to post today but instead I got caught up last night in a television marathon of The Tudors.

Of course I've heard of this series and I even caught a bit of it once, but I never bothered to find out exactly when it was on. But I was channel surfing and saw they had three episodes back to back to back last night. I'm not sure where they started - whether it was at the beginning or not but it was early enough on to make sense of it. It wasn't until the third episode that he met the Bolyen sisters.

They showed it 'uncut' and that was rather eye opening. Quite the randy bunch they were!

Now that I've seen it and know when it's on, I think I might keep watching - at least for a while anyway. I love period dramas - no surprise there *g*. I'm sure I'm not the only romace reader to love this genre of movies, but I'm not so sure when the hero - isn't! I loved history in school and English history in particular, so I know Henry VIII - while not a bad king, was NOT a nice person. Jonathan Rhys Meyers sure does make a compelling Henry though doesn't he?







****ETA****

What I did get a kick out of while watching last night though, was the birth of Henry’s son whom he declared Henry Fitzmorris. Of course I thought immediately of Blood Ties, one of my favourite shows (before the #
%#$*^% cancelled it) the Vampire hero Henry Fitzmorris, the bastard son of Henry VIII.
Very Interesting I thought!!!

Congratulations to Lisa Kleypas and Sophie Kinsella!

Blue-Eyed Devil is #14 for its first week out on the NY Times Hardcover Fiction Best Seller List!

And don't forget Sophia Kinsella's Remember Me? which is #3 after 5 weeks out and going strong!

Cheers two both these wonderful authors who write incredible stories we all can enjoy!

Kate's Deep Tag

Tag! I am it!

You're feeling: caffeinated

To your left: pillows

On your mind: sex

Last meal included: yogurt and a banana

You sometimes find it hard to: get out of bed

The weather: cloudy, around 45 degrees

Something you have a collection of: coke cola items

A smell that cheers you up: brownies fresh out of the oven

A smell that can ruin your mood: burning rubber

How long since you last shaved: Saturday

The current state of your hair: Just got a haircut!

The largest item on your desk/workspace (not computer): books and more books

Your skill with chopsticks: to funny to mention

Which section you head for first in a bookstore: romance

Something you're craving: coffee

Your general thoughts on the presidential race: Who do I choose?

How many times have you been hospitalized this year: none

Favourite place to go for a quiet moment: my bedroom

You've always secretly thought you'd be a good: teacher

Something that freaks you out a little: spiders

Something you've eaten too much of lately: pretzels

You have never: fallen in love

You never want to: grow old alone with no husband or children

Katiebabs

Tagged

by Zeke for this one word meme.

You're feeling: tired

To your left: books

On your mind: laundry

Last meal included: Caesar salad

You sometimes find it hard to: get into housework mode

The weather: sunny

Something you have a collection of: sailing ships - the model kind, not real ones

A smell that cheers you up: berry candles

A smell that can ruin your mood: something burning

How long since you last shaved: Friday

The current state of your hair: total bed head

The largest item on your desk/workspace (not computer): pile of books

Your skill with chopsticks: non existent

Which section you head for first in a bookstore: romance

Something you're craving: prime rib

Your general thoughts on the presidential race: hate the nasty politics

How many times have you been hospitalized this year: none

Favourite place to go for a quiet moment: my reclining sofa

You've always secretly thought you'd be a good: actress

Something that freaks you out a little: crickets

Something you've eaten too much of lately: chocolate bars

You have never: acted

You never want to: go up in a hot air balloon

Katie - she tagged you too. Your turn.

My First Boy Crush

The year was 1989 and I was 13 years old. Since I grew up on old AM country music and Barry Manilow, I had no clue about pop till my father decided to buy a 1987 blue Nova with FM radio. The first time I heard New Kids on the Block was on my very first FM station and the song was, "The Right Stuff". From there I found out about Tiffany, Debbie Gibson and what MTV was all about.

I remember the day clearly when I saw these boys on TV. It was a commercial for their album, "Hangin' Tough". I looked up at the TV and my heart stopped because I noticed the youngest one with sparkling blue eyes. His name is Joey and he was sixteen years old. (He is the first one in this picture). I was a goner. From that moment on I purchased every teen magazine I could get with my babysitting money, which at the time I made $1.50 an hour. Every Friday I would go to my local 7-11 store and bought every magazine off their shelves. From there I would post every picture in those magazines on my bedroom wall and my goal was the have wall to wall New Kids and Joey. My sister did the same and we bonded over these boys.

My first concert ever was in 1990 and it was The New Kids on The Block. My mother took my sister and I to Giants Stadium in Rutherford, NY with 70,000 + screaming girls, like myself. I knew every song of their by heart and sang with them even though I was a football field away from them.

Years went by but my love for you remained strong, well mainly for Joey. After twelve years in the making I met Joey in 2002 in an Off Broadway show in NYC called Tick, Tick Boom. I sat in the front row, with my mother. I was close enough to see the spit coming out of your mouth. The time came to finally meet you. With shaking hands I slowly made me way to you in the lobby. I took a breath and asked for you signature on my playbill and then a picture and finally a hug. My mother came up to you and said, "You have gotten so old!". You smiled and blushed. And then I left on shaky feet very much in control and as I reach the street I screamed and yelled like that thirteen year old girl I was once because I had met the first boy I ever had a crush on.

And for that I thank you.


Katiebabs

All in All, there's just no more brick in the wall

This particular post was inspired by Jace’s recent review of Gabriel’s Ghost. We are now both eagerly waiting for Shades of Dark! The author Linnea Sinclair popped in with some comments and one of them just struck me:

First person POV is a POV I love but I didn't set out to write first person. It was simply that the story could be told no other way. It was never even a question but over the past few years, when I've been confronted by readers who refuse to read Gabriel's Ghost because it's first person, I've given it some thought.

A few years ago that could have been me – the reader I mean – not the author (although I’d never write an author and tell her I wouldn’t read her books – I just wouldn’t read them and not tell her)

When I was younger I used to read a lot of first person books and they never bothered me. If I remember correctly most of Mary Stewarts books were written in the first person and I loved them. Jennie could confirm that but the poor dear has gone to Hawaii.

But that was before I really started reading romance books and since I've been pretty much strictly a romance reader for a while now, first person doesn't allow you to get into the hero's head. We only get one person’s POV. I would pick up a book in a bookstore and if it was written in the first person I would immediately put it back on the shelf. I even have a few books I purchased through a book club not realizing they were first person and when I discovered they were, I put them somewhere else and never even attempted them.

But with a well skilled writer, I've discovered you can get a good enough sense of the hero through the heroine's thoughts. I've read a number of really excellent first person romance books now and I no longer cringe when I realize that's how they are written. It's like a much bigger world has opened up again.

I think there is still a certain prejudice amongst many romance fans against first person books, and even I until very recently had a lingering trepidation myself, but I am discovering that I need to get over that.

I first started weakening when I began reading the Stephanie Plum books. Although not exactly romance books, there was enough romance in them to satisfy me. I love them. I adore them. And for the record – I’m a Joe girl – just wanted to get that out.

But even though I was weakening in my stance with first person books, I still wasn’t a happy camper when I heard that Linda Howard would be having a first person book coming out. Her books were definitely more romance focused. I presumed they wouldn’t be as good as her third person books because one of the things I like best about third person books is getting into the hero’s head during love scenes. When you think about it though, it really isn’t all that credible. Let’s face it – men and women view sex differently and being in the hero’s head in a love scene in a book is really still being in a women’s head as the vast majority of romance books are written by women.

Then, because it was Linda Howard and I just couldn’t pass it up, I read To Die For and even though we never got into Wyatt’s head, it didn’t seem to matter. I loved the book and I think it really worked told from Blair’s POV. I know many readers found her annoying, but I loved her. And I think a large part of that was because it was Blair head we were in.

Then after reading Games of Command last year, I simply had to read more Linnea Sinclair books and the next one on my list was Gabriel’s Ghost and I was pretty much sold after that. I loved it just as much as GOC. I remember reading a review on Jennie’s B(ook) Blog just before I posted my own thoughts. Jennie commented that she didn’t even really clue in that it was first person. I thought that this was very telling. A book can be read and enjoyed written in the first person without it even being an issue.

The next big leap was when Lisa Kleypas wrote her first book in the first person – Sugar Daddy. I confess that even though the wall I used to have was more along the lines of rubble, still, this was Lisa Kleypas. Then I got past my previous bias and thought if Linda Howard could write a first person book that I loved, then so could Lisa Kleypas. And so she did! When I picked up The Blue Eyed Devil, there was no hesitation at all. If two of my favourite authors could write in the first person and I could love the books, then I’m pretty sure even the remaining rubble is gone now. I eagerly picked up Blue Eyed Devil and read it - not a single moment of hesitation. And one of the books I'm really looking forward to is as I mentioned earlier, Shades of Dark which like Gabriel's Ghost is again done in the first person.

So how about anyone else? Do you have that preconceived notion that first books person books can’t be as enjoyable as third person? Have you put a book back on the shelf in the store when you discover it’s first person? And even more important *g* if you are one of those kinds of readers, have I a former first person chauvinist convinced you to give one of them a try?

Or are a reader who has no problems with first person romance books? Which ones are your favourites? Now that I'm cured, I'm open.

Next hurdle - first person, present tense. I hear that Grimspace by Ann Aguirre is the book for this one.

The "NAH NAH" Game

I noticed some websites/blogs have started posting their excitment over receiving this ARC:

Poor lil' old me does not have this ARC and I will have to wait till June like the rest. But I do have these:

Why three is better then one! Now this is coming from the one woman who still doesn't have Blue Eyed Devil! For shame I know. So, let us celebrate the books we have in out TBR piles. If you have a book that you are proud to say "nah nah" look at what I have, let it out for the world to hear!

This is my own form of therapy *G*

Katiebabs (KB)

Simply Enchanted!

“Once upon a time, in a magical kingdom known as Andalasia, there lived an evil queen. Selfish and cruel, she lived in fear that one day her stepson would marry and she would lose her thrown forever. And so she did all in her power to prevent the prince from ever meeting the one special maiden with whom he would share true love's kiss.”

I finally watched one of the best movies of 2007 and it is one of those movies that makes you smile, laugh and where everyone in the end gets their HEA. It is called Enchanted and if you are a fan of Disney’s fairy tales and cute and adorable characters, this is the movie for you.

Enchanted is a very ingenious type of movie that takes the typical fairy tale about the lovely and innocent heroine looking for love, finds her prince. But with Enchanted, there is a twist, where true love is not always perfect and the realities of life intrude. I guess you can also say this movie is a bit of a spoof, where Disney is having some fun at their own expense. When I was a lil’ one watching those Disney cartoons we all love and adore, I would sigh as the lucky girl found her true love, they would kiss and everything would fade to black. It always ended there. We never found out what happened after the adoring couple were married and if their love survived.

Enchanted starts out as any one of these faithful cartoons do, where our plucky heroine Giselle (Amy Adams who is near perfect) is singing to every animal imaginable. All wildlife is her friend and for some reason she is quite well rounded with no parent or guardian to watch over her. Giselle is on the cusp of womanhood, and very much an innocent who lives in a tree house and creates her mock prince with buttons and odd things around the house. But soon after, Giselle is found by her true love who happens to be Prince Edward. They seem to fall in love and will get married. But Prince Edward’s evil step-mother Queen (Susan Sarandon who looks incredible!) is not happy. And in an interesting move, she pushes Gisele into a so-called wishing well that brings her to New York City and lands right in Times Square!

Edward goes down the same well to find her, because he must save his love after all! (And I must say James Marsden was the highlight of this movie! Every time he was on screen I couldn’t stop laughing. He is just so cute!)

Giselle meets a single father, Robert (Patrick Dempsey aka McDreamy) and his daughter who take her in for the night, and from there insane madness ensues. But through it all, Giselle keeps her chin up and learns so much, but always with a smile on her face, a skip in her step and can't help but break out into song at a moment’s notice. Giselle believes that everyone has someone to love them out there, and you must show them that you do, because if you don’t, how will they know?

Enchanted is perfect for almost anyone at every age and as I watched it, it brought back memories of when I first watched Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Sleeping Beauty or Beauty and the Beast. It makes me believe that there is a true love for everyone out there, you just have to search, realize who they are, and when the final scene fades to black there is still a lot of work to be done, but at least you know you found your Prince or Princess.

Katiebabs

Future Sexy Cover! *After The Kiss by Suzanne Enoch*

I love all of Suzanne Enoch's books and this cover is very sexy and hot!
Look for this book in June! No synopsis or excerpt yet! I wonder how notorious these gentlemen will be?

Katiebabs

Recent Read

Unlawful Contact by Pamela Clare

As I mentioned earlier, I've gotten to know Pamela Clare. So it was with a bit of trepidation I opened and began reading Unlawful Contact. I didn’t want to be disappointed or disappoint her in the review but I also wanted to be honest. While I’ve enjoyed almost all her books, a couple were less than fives *g*. I wasn’t too worried about Unlawful Contact though, as right out of the gate it has one of my favourite storylines – the hero in prison for years. There’s just something yummy about a hero having been locked away from women for years that’s just delish.

Once I started reading though, I knew very quickly this was going to be another good one. And it was, very much so. But I read it a while ago and I thought maybe I should read it again and then right this review right after.

‘T’was no hardship though and I’m glad that I did reread it. I first read it before she posted her series on her experience going spending a night in a women’s prison to get a real sense of what it was like. If you haven’t read about her experience, it really is a absorbing tale she has to tell. Also since I first read it, three reviews have come out, one by Gwen at TGTBTU and one by Alicia at TGTBTU. And DA gave it recommended pick for April, with Jane’s review here. So I know I’m not alone in thinking this a Very Good Book.

The story starts out with a star crossed love between Hunt – the school bad boy saving Sophie Alton, the shy out of place girl from a threatening situation. They go off for a midnight drive and hormones heat up. But Hunt has joined the Army and is due to leave the next day.

The story then picks up some years later. Sophie is now an investigative journalist who is headed to the local prison to see the brother of a missing girl Sophie has written a series of stories about. Sophie is very concerned about Megan, the young girl who had spent time in prison herself for doing drugs. Marc Hunter takes Sophie hostage in his attempt at escape. She’s terrified as she doesn’t recognize him as that young man she had fallen for so many years ago.

The story is riveting as Marc and Sophie race against time to try and find Marc’s sister. There is a shadow of doomed love throughout the story as Marc knows they have no future. He will either be fleeing the country, end up back in jail or dead as both the good guys and the bad guys are after him.

But what really awed me on the reread is having read Pamela’s diary of her night spent in prison. When reading the book the second time, knowing that so much of what she wrote as true-to-life made it even more better (I know, the grammar police are going to get me for that last little bit – but it’s the only way I can explain it – ‘cause just using better isn’t enough)

What I also appreciated is the secondary characters from her previous books in this series played an active role in the story. They weren’t just ‘along for the ride’.

This one is steamy – and I mean very steamy as Marc and Sophie try to pack a lifetime’s worth of love into just a few days. There is this car scene…….

This one gets a 5 and a hearty thumbs up from me.

So far this is turning out to be one heck of a reading year!

Interview with Pamela Clare - continued

(Just so you know - I'm working on this while listening to the Last of the Mohicans soundtrack *sigh* - what a great soundtrack!)

Now - onto Part II

And now, as regards to your historicals. One of the things I find most appealing about this is the time and the setting. Since historicals are predominantly set in England in the past few years, was it hard getting Sweet Release sold?

Oh, absolutely, yes! The fact is that Regency historicals totally dominate the historical market now, even though many readers say they’re sick of being stuck with one time period. I personally don’t like Regencies much. I need a bit more of the outdoors in my stories. I’m from Colorado, for goodness sake! Ballrooms would probably bore me to tears. Plus I find early Colonial American history fascinating. So my first trilogy — Sweet Release, Carnal Gift, Ride the Fire — was mostly set in Colonial America. My second trilogy, the MacKinnon’s Rangers trilogy, is entirely set in the area north of Albany between what was Fort Edward and Quebec to the north. (Yes, there will be some Canadian history in Connor’s story.)

Sweet Release was turned down by several publishers because it was set in Colonial America. I was told, “Write medieval Scotland or something.” But that’s not what I wanted to do, so I didn’t. I might do that one day, because I have some stories in my head now that weren’t there before. But I never want to be trapped by trends. I want to write the story that’s inside me asking to be written. Nothing else.

You, and many others, know how much I adore your historicals and Ride the Fire in particular *g*. How did you come up with the premise for this series?

It started with a lecture in my American history class. The prof talked about this little historical footnote called The Paxton Boys’ Rebellion and told how frontier Scotch-Irish rose up against Tidewater English all along the Colonial Frontier from the South to Philadelphia (not really Tidewater country, but you get the idea). They were angry because they felt they’d been ignored during the French and Indian War (Seven Years’ War) and left to suffer terribly at the hands of war parties. And they had been brutalized. Many had been slaughtered, some by burning alive. So they confronted the English city-dwellers. In the South, people died. In Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin went out, unarmed, to speak with them and turn them away.

This little story clicked in my head as a little-known part of history that I wanted to put in a book. So I took that as Book III, and went generationally backward so that I could have a trilogy. That took me to about 1730. I did 2-1/2 years of historical research on that period before starting Sweet Release. Nicholas, whom you so love, came to me in one chunk while I was writing Carnal Gift. I could barely wait to tell his story. Ride the Fire is also my favorite historical and is personal to me in some very significant ways. When I finished writing it, I was trashed. I’ve never been as emotionally drained as I was from that book. I couldn’t bring myself to write an epilogue. But the book is being reprinted in October with a new cover, and the epilogue will be made available online on Dorchester’s website. Which I still have to write. Any input, Kristie? *g*

I know Morgan’s story is next in your historical books. Do you have a release date for that one yet? I know a lot of readers are very much looking forward to it.

Yes, I do have a release date and some raw cover art. The book is almost done and will be on out in November. (Want to post an excerpt?) It will tell Morgan’s story and that of the French-Métis woman he meets after being injured and taken captive at Ticonderoga. Amalie was raised in an Ursuline convent and is Abenaki on her mother’s side, but French on her father’s. She’s never lived with the Abenaki, so culturally she’s very French and very innocent. How else would you be if you’d been raised in a convent from the age of 3? I’m loving being with them, and I’m absolutely delighted to be with my Rangers again — Dougie, Killy, McHugh, Forbes, Brandon. The whole bunch. This also contains Canadian (French) history.

I, like a lot of women, loved the film The Last of the Mohicans, and my MacKinnon’s Rangers series is set in the heart of the same conflict that dominates that movie.

Can I say that I for one am glad you are writing in both genres. I love ‘em both!

Thanks so much for your sweet words! I know a lot of people really want me to focus on the historicals, and I will continue to write historicals. But I think going back and forth helps me be a better writer because I’m never able to get sick of anything.

All your books have some very hot and highly charged loves scenes – just one of the many reasons I love them. There’s the shaving scene in Surrender, the shower scene in Hard Evidence and the tying up scene in Ride the Fire. And then in the upcoming Unlawful Contact there’s the car scene. I’m not going to say anything more – but wowzers – was it hawt! Is it hard writing such wonderfully wicked sex scenes?


I’m delighted that you think the scenes are hot. And the car scene... I thought that was just fun, plus I think Colorado has kind of a tradition of road head. Not sure why that is. Maybe the altitude. But, yes, I find sex scenes very hard to write if I want them to be fresh and good. I don’t want to use the same descriptions or metaphors. I want the sex to reflect the characters of that story specifically. There’s physical action to figure out, plus each character’s physical and emotional response not just to the stimuli but also to one another and the fact that they love this person (whether they realize it or not). So for me, it’s always a challenge to make the sex scene true to the characters, make it relevant to the story, make it sexy and make it read well. I just wrote the consummation scene in Untamed, and it took six 18-hour writing days. I’m not kidding. I try hard to avoid repetitive language from book to book, not easy when the sex act consists of only so many variations on a theme. I told a friend of mine recently that this is the only profession where you find yourself struggling at 3 a.m. to come up with a new way of describing ejaculate.

And how do you come up with your ideas – without going into too much details *g*?

I really focus on who the characters are. For me, that’s everything. Each character is his/her own person, and so ideas that I associate with them come to me. Or ideas closely related to their story. With the Jag, it was just clear — they must have sex in/on this car! I would! So I knew there’d be a Jag sex scene, but I didn’t know what it was until Marc and Sophie were driving past Macy’s and I knew he didn’t like her wearing those frumpy clothes and then Sophie gets this idea... Can you see what I mean? It comes from the characters, as crazy as that probably sounds. That’s probably most obvious with Ride the Fire, where Bethie has an absolute fear/loathing of sexual contact that fades only gradually as Nicholas frees her sexuality.

And one more question – I know you have two sons. Do they ever read your books? I’m just curious because I have two sons too and I suggested to my youngest one that he read one – half kidding – I like to throw him off sometimes and he just looked at me in horror. The oldest one on the other hand would have a more open mind I think.

Yes, they do read the books. I told them they might learn something. Yes, I said that. I came of age in Denmark, which is a very sexually free society. So I’ve been very open with my kids about the facts of life and sex since they were old enough to ask questions. My son Alec found it a bit weird when he read Sweet Release to see someone with his name in the role of the hero. But both boys are very supportive of me and what I do, contributing lots of hours of housework and meal-making to give me the time I need to write.

For the longest time Ron was not exactly happy with the fact that I was a romance junkie. He finally accepted it though and started getting me gift certificates to Chapters (our version of Barns & Noble) He would never did read them himself though. The closest he ever came was reading a Tami Hoag book once after she switched to suspense. He found them in the suspense section of the library and I got quite a chuckle when I pulled a couple of the ones I had off the shelf and showed him. I don't think he ever read any of hers after that *g*. And I never told him - but he reaped the benefits more than a few times after I'd read a particularly 'stirring' book *BG*

Too many men don’t realize the full value of romance novels. Let me correct that: VERY FEW men understand that these books offer them sex lessons AND turn their wives on. If they did, they’d read more and give their wives lots of gift cards for book stores. LOL!
Thanks, Kristie, so much!

And finally this wonderful picture is the artwork of her next Colonial book Untamed - think....consummation scene........



I'd like to say a hearty THANK YOU to Pamela for her time!

50 Ways to Hex Your Lover Contest Winners!

A little witch came to me and picked 3 winners who will receive their own copy of 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover!

They are:

Jill D.

Shannon

Arwen

I just need you to send me your mailing address to Katiebabs @ aol .com to the attention of Kate :)

Sorry, no Fluff and Puff in this package! (They would probably eat the book)

And a big THANK YOU to Linda for a wonderful interview and taking the time to stop by and answer some questions.

Katiebabs

For something different - and special

I’ve never been one to want to get close to authors. I read very few of their blogs and while I love meeting them in person, still for the most part I prefer a bit of a, I don’t know curtain maybe – but that’s still not the right word – between myself and authors.

But every so often the curtain goes down and authors become friends. Such is the case with Pamela Clare. I discovered her writing with her first book – Sweet Release and loved it and I’ve bought all her books since then. When I read the third book in the series – Ride the Fire I was truly blown away. And you know what can happen when something blows me away *g*

I wrote to tell her how much I enjoyed it and she emailed me back. We continued emailing each other occasionally. I remember one day in particular. It was after Ron had been diagnosed but I hadn’t told anyone yet. I was still working, but unable to settle down to work. I was still thinking he would get better, but doubts were beginning to creep in.

I checked my email and there was an email from Pamela. I emailed her back and we emailed each other for most of the day. I know it probably wasn’t a good idea to do it from work – but I wasn’t busy and it kept my mind from going where I wasn’t willing for it to go.

She helped me keep my sanity that day. It turned out we had all kinds of things in common; a love of Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod, the movie Last of the Mohicans and the soundtrack. We both loved the music of Loreena McKennit and Gaelic music in general. She’s *whimpering* met the group Great Big Sea! We talked about other things too, many of which escape me now.

When her first Romantic Suspense, Extreme Exposure came out, I quite enjoyed it but not on quite the same level as Ride the Fire. Her second RS, Hard Evidence was a different story. I LOVED it.

When I found out that we were both going to Dallas last year, I emailed her to see if she had time to meet in person, along with another author I now consider a friend, but more on her at a later time. She very quickly replied that she would love too and took time out of her busy schedule – she was nominated for a RITA for Surrender.

Then she offered to send me a copy of her upcoming release Unlawful Contact and I LOVED it even more. My review is to follow – I had to read it again so it would be fresh*g*.

I love her books and because she is a special person, I decided to do something on a grander scale than I did with Lisa Kleypas, – an author interview. I asked her if she would be interested and she agreed.

Because she was so interesting with her answers – and I kept asking questions, this turned out rather long so it’s going to be a two-parter

So here goes – something I’m new at an interview with an author friend.

Part 1

Pamela: I’m curious as too why after writing three historicals, why you decided to test the waters with Romantic Suspense. Not that I’m not glad you did. I love the way you write in both genres.

I was in the middle of working on Carnal Gift, bit about how things were at the newspaper, as well, and I mentioned that I’d gotten a phone call from a government official warning me that I might be in danger from employees of the company I was investigating at the time. His exact words were: “These guys aren’t going to write you a letter to the editor. They’re going to beat the shit out of you with baseball bats.”

This was far from the first time that I’d been facing possible risks associated with my work as an investigative reporter. I’d had a gun held on me before. I’d had copious death threats, one of which was serious enough that the FBI got involved. I also had a couple of stalkers, one of whom wrote me letters telling me where I’d been and what I’d said. He told me that I deserved to die, that God wanted me to die and that he had an AK-47 at home that he could kill me with. Blah, blah, blah.

So my agent, knowing all of this and hearing about this new investigation, said, “Why don’t you write romantic suspense, because you live it.”

I started putting together some ideas for stories, and I came up with the concept of the I-Team series, which would revolve around the investigations of investigative journalists associated with a fictional Denver newspaper. I drew loosely on the years I’d served as editor for what I called (and still call) the Dream Team, a group of phenomenally talented investigative reporters with whom I had the pleasure of working for a handful of years. Most of us are still in touch and very close. Together we racked up copious national journalism awards, including the National Journalism Award for Public Service, and kicked some serious bad-guy butt.

I’d never read or written romantic suspense, so it was a real shift for me. I loved the freedom of word choice associated with writing contemporaries, and I’ve enjoyed writing these books more than I’d imagined. However, I was really worried that people would find journalism booooring. I kept telling my agent, “Readers are going to fall asleep!” She said that I only felt that way because I do this stuff every day and that it would be new and interesting to readers.

So I guess I should thank those guys who wanted to beat me up for inspiring my agent.

Trivia: The Denver Independent is a name incorporated by myself and two members of the Dream Team. We never had the money to start the paper, but we did file incorporation papers in 2001. Those two Dream Team reporters are with me on Facebook on the I-Team Facebook page I started (and haven’t done much with yet).


A number of authors who write in different genres use different names for each Nora Roberts/JD Robb, Elizabeth Hoyt/Julia Harper first come to mind. Did you think of writing under different names?

Yes, I did. But that would mean managing two websites and two blogs and signing books with two names. I don’t have that much RAM in my head. I would have been perpetually confused about who I was at the moment. I don’t think it has caused problems for me or for my readers to write under the same name.


Do you write both genres at the same time or do you finish one and then switch to the other? Is it hard to make that leap across time?

It is easier to switch from historical to contemp than the other way around. I can only write one at a time, but I can only focus on one writing project at a time as it is. A RAM problem again. I get very focused on my characters and it’s hard to switch at all until a story is done.

*g* I don’t find your romantic suspense boring at all. It seems in the RS genre, you put a lot of your own experiences into the writing. Do you find that this makes it any easier to write in the genre you know more about?

I think it does make it easier. I don’t have to do a lot of research because the heroine’s side of things is already researched along with the central action of the book. I’ve had to do research for the hero’s professions and what they bring to the mix, but that’s not overwhelming. Also, I never have to wonder, “Hmmm, I wonder what a reporter does first thing in the morning?” I just sit and write those scenes. When I wrote EXTREME EXPOSURE, I was giggling while I was writing them (did I tell you this already?) because it was just so bizarre to be typing newsroom scenes.


It sounds like you’ve had some harrowing experiences with your reporting. Do you have any plans to give up your job as an investigative reporter and concentrate on writing novels?

Yes, absolutely. As soon as the novels pay 100 percent of the bills, I’m going to leave journalism. People who know me as a journalist say they have a hard time imagining that, but they’re on the outside of me, not on the inside. They don’t know how much I love writing fiction or how weary I’ve become of some aspects of journalism. At the same time, I have to say that giving my life over to journalism for a time has enriched me immeasurably not only in expanding my understanding of human beings, but also in inspiring me and bringing me together with wonderful people, both journalists and people I’ve interviewed. For every scary experience, I’ve had 100 sublime moments of thinking, “I am so blessed to do this for a living!” I’ve met people I consider to be saints. I’ve met people whose courage staggered me. I’ve left interviews and had to cry in the car because I was so moved by what I’d heard. If you have to have a day job, journalism is perfect. No two days are ever the same. And because I love to experience so many different things, it’s been perfect for me. I am ready to move on, however.


How do you manage to find the time to write in such diverse arenas? I wouldn’t think a journalist would be a regular nine to five kind of job.

It isn’t, and it encroaches on my writing career. Kind of a double-edged sword there. On the one hand, the I-Team series is all about journalism and has been inspired by my own experiences. On the other hand, it’s hard to get the time you need when you’re putting to bed an 80-page paper and reporting on something that kept you up till 3 AM. Also, just the act of writing CONSTANTLY is exhausting. Sometimes I wonder why my brain doesn’t just run out of words. I write at work. I write at home.

As an aside, a reporter from another paper one time called to set up photographs. He said they wanted to get a picture of what I do at work and what I do at home. Of course, they’re very much the same thing: sit at a desk writing and editing. So I thought I’d have some fun with that. I wore my normal work attire, did the editor thang. Then at home I filled my home office with roses, put on a floor-length velvet gown and put my hair up. And they took those photos and put them in the paper. It was so hysterically absurd that they didn’t understand that I was poking fun at their assumption that writing romance would somehow be different photographically from writing news articles.

I know you are planning another book in the I-Team series. Do you have any more in mind after the next one? See here I am asking about more when the next one isn’t even done yet heh heh.

Yes, at least one more I-Team book. It will tell Katherine James’ story — Kat we call her in the story. She’s a mixed-blood Navajo living in Denver and her story will focus on contemporary urban Indian issues. I’m very excited about that — another one of my focuses as a journalist. Then after that hopefully Natalie’s story and then HOLLY! I can’t wait to write Holly’s. I adore her. She’ll be last. So if reader interest stays high, there might be other books before Holly’s.

And here's her trailer for Unlawful Contact



Stay Tuned for Part II