I'm not dead, I've just been reading...

Hello, hello!

Every time I come here, I find myself having to clarify that I'm still alive and kicking.  Mmmm....  One needs to work on one's time management.  Or, stop working.  I know which I'd prefer.

I know which one Sparky would prefer....

It's been a little nuts here, what with Christmas coming, Anarchy slamming his thumb in a door and requiring plastic surgery, Faith going on camp, and getting gastro, and Love turning nine.

Mental, I tells ya!  I'm at peak performance when only one thing at a time is happening in my life.

BUT, I do love Christmas.  The fun, the food, the joy, the wine, the ... balls.

http://www.mhfa.com.au/cms/latest-news/christmas-balls-final-2/

Christmas seemed to come late to Casa Lock this year, so I've been watching this over and over, to get in the swing of things.  So much fabulous.  My data bill is through the wazoo, but totes worth it.

And because I've been buying myself eBooks for Christmas (I know it's not Christmas yet.  Hush yo' mouth), There've been NEW BOOKS!

I've been rounding up our SARA reads at www.romancesa.blogspot.com, and here's my offering for that column, x-posted.

Emmeline Lock

I also picked up Rough Diamond, and just finished it last night.  Phew-ee! Somebody say, "Adventurous ROLLER COASTER with GOOD LAUGHS and HOT LERV"?  Couldn't put it down.  Yes, Ms Ledson.  I am a little weary today.  But I don't regret a moment!

I agree, Carla, it's a funny, quippy read that doesn't belabour the relationship between Erica and Jack, even though life throws all kinds of rotten tomatoes their way.   Check out Sandra O'Grady's thoughts on this book here.  

The ending did leave me a bit wanting, until I rationalised the whole "Um, Emmeline, dude, there's another book," thing.  Then, I felt that the ending was very well done, and felt that Jack was some kind of GOD.  Oh, yum.

Looking forward to Monkey Business, the next book.  And not just because I want more Jack.  Well, maybe not only because I want more Jack... 


Speaking of awesome Aussie writers...  Here's a few I've been mowing through like Christmas chocolates...

The Kissing Season - Rachel Johns.

I do love to read Ms Johns, and this 100-page book does nothing to tarnish my girl-crush.  

A gorgeous hero (with an accent!), a feisty heroine, a small-town feel and and Aussie Christmas!  What more could a reader want?!

Rubies and Black Velvet - Denise Rossetti

I'm a big fan of Rossetti's Four-Sided Pentacle series (Loved The Flame and the Shadow!), and this novella, which falls at #1.5,  brings us all the mystique and sultry heat of those books.

Once again, the hero, John, was a work of art.  He was perfect.  Completely sigh-worthy.  

A curse, a delectable hero, a strong heroine, well-woven fantasy and a number of beautifully-done erotic scenes.  Win!  

Originally published in Unlaced in 2008, it stands alone well, and is a well-worth a holiday read.  

Bravo, Ms Rossetti!


Speaking of gorgeous novellas, I've also had a few more crackers that I've taken off of the top of the TBR and devoured...


Starstruck in Seattle - Juliet Madison

An adorable, funny, quick read that left me wanting more Juliet Madison!

Which led me to...

I Dream of Johnny!

I would have bought this for the title and cover alone, but on the back of a surge of Juliet love, this one was awesome.  A very cute, uplifting read.  





Finally, allow me to share with you one final book that I have recently read and loved...

Catch of the Day - Carla Caruso

Isn't that just THE prettiest cover you have seen for eons?  Our summer (ha!) has started off very cold, and made me kinda depressed.  But fear not, one look at this cover and I was cured!  The colours, the water, the floppy hat and the little heart ... isn't it just perfect!?
  
Now, Ms Caruso is fully aware of my girl-crush on her (I may or may not have done some gushing over CITYGLITTER here.) and it's only marginally embarrassing for us both.   

I would happily wear a lifetime of  weird silences and cleared throats, if I could read gems such as this.  

Set in Kingston SE, this is a wonderful coming-home story (I do love those, especially when high-flying women pack up their stilettos...).  It has a number of my favourite things--a mysterious hero, a heroine who knows what she wants and doesn't dally about decision making, crystal-blue waters, small-town heart ... and crayfish!  Heaven!

Do yourself a favour, hit the beach with this great book.  NOW!

And what is really cool is that every author featured today is AUSTRALIAN!  I KNOW!  Awesome, RIGHT?  

Oi, oi, oi!


Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and see you on the flipside!

Em xx

U is for Ubiquitous Ugg Boots

Do I look like a crazy person?  No, stop.  Don't answer that.

Apparently, I might be.  

I've signed up to do the Romance Writers of Australia's 50k in 30 Days.

Uh huh.  This is where you live like a hermit for the month of June, sitting at the computer in a pile of balled-up paper, used coffee cups and random handfuls of you own hair that you've pulled out, and write a big pile o' words.  

Bearing in mind that don't live by myself in a self-cleaning cave, waited on by bare-chested male servants, eating chocolate and actually losing weight, I thought perhaps the full fifty might be asking a bit much of my life.

I've pledged to do 20k.  See, not totally sense-impaired.  For the most part.

If I manage it, it will go awfully close to completing a short story I've got about 8k on at the moment.  It means I need to write 600 words a day.  Keep me honest by checking the ticker over there somewhere --->.  Feel free to publicly heckle me if it's not up to date.  

This story is about a Delly, a party girl who just knows that New Year's in Adelaide is going to be a huge bust; Alex, a sculptor with a past who shuns the fast lane, but whose appreciation of five-inch heels is growing by the hour, and Esme, a taxi-driving Cupid, who is handy with an arrow, but seems incapable of making good life decisions.  

Mmm, can you tell I'm still getting a handle on this one?

So, first day, I was running around a lot and kinda forgot it was June.  Wrote nada.

Day two, I wrote just over 1200 words, and caught up.

Day three, I was feeling revolting and was being waited on by Sparky and the Offspring as I lay on the couch.  I read a book on craft, but wrote zip.  (Leigh Michaels, ON WRITING ROMANCE.  It makes sense to me, which is marvellous.  And unusual.)

Today is day four, and I fully intend to catch up again.  Promise.  

I have come home and lit the fire because it's currently 9 degrees here, and that's not warm enough as far as I'm concerned.

In search of further warmth, I have donned the ugg boots.

Now, ugg boots--being a sheepskin boot worn by true Aussies during winter, primarily for warmth--are not something I think about much.

They are warm, cuddly, soft and need throwing in the washing machine every now and then because, let's face it, feet are prone to the pong.  You can get the skin variety, which last longest, or duck into Target every year and buy a new, bright pink pair of synthetic ones.  All shapes, all sizes, kids, ladies, men, dogs.  They're everywhere for everyone. Ubiquitous came to mind.  

(From Merriam-Webster dot com : 

Definition of UBIQUITOUS

: existing or being everywhere at the same time : constantly encountered : widespread,  ubiquitous fashion)

Feeling ignorant, I have run to Google. Some interesting facts about ugg boots, from Wiki:

"Ugg boots (sometimes called uggs)^[1] are known in Australia and New Zealand as a unisex style of sheepskin boot made of twin-faced sheepskin with fleece on the inside and with a tanned outer surface, often with a synthetic sole. The boots originated in those countries, initially as utilitarian footwear worn for warmth and comfort and later adopted by surfers there during the 1960s. In the 1970s, the boots were introduced to the surf culture of the United Kingdom and the United States by local surfers returning from surfing competitions in Australia. Ugg boots emerged as a fashion trend in the United States in the late 1990s and as a world-wide trend in the late 2000s, yet in Australia they are worn predominantly as slippers and associated with "daggy" fashion sense, and bogan culture."

Love bogan culture.  But, digressing.

"Generally worn for warmth and comfort, ugg boots had never been considered fashionable in their country of origin (Emmeline:  LOL!) , but in 2001 sheepskin boots emerged as a fashion trend in the US through Deckers' promotions of the UGG brand, with celebrities such as Kate Hudson, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cameron Diaz, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lopez wearing the boots, and with Oprah Winfrey featuring UGG brand boots as one of her "Favorite Things" on her TV talk show.

...By way of contrast, ugg boots in Australia were worn predominantly as slippers and associated with "daggy fashion sense, bogan behaviour" and the "outer suburbs" when worn in public.^" 

However, it is not all rainbows, roses and happy bogan culture for iconic national footwear:

"In 2007, Pamela Anderson, realising that ugg boots were made of skin, wrote on her website: "I thought they were shaved kindly? People like to tell me all the time that I started that trend – yikes! Well let's start a new one – do NOT buy Uggs!" 

Yikes!  Regardless of your political inclinations, uggs are UBIQUITOUS.  

And please remember to shave kindly!

J is for Joanne and K is for Kathleen

Yes, of course, I mean that Joanne Kathleen.  AKA, JKR.

Rejoice, Potterheads! JK Rowling has another book coming out--for grown-ups.  She will be publishing this one through Little, Brown and not the HP series publisher, Bloomsbury.

Jo's seven Harry Potter novels have sold more than 450 million copies worldwide.  Completely awesome.

Regardless of what you think of her writing style and how it might translate into adult fiction, you must admit that those are miiii-iighty fine stats.

She has reached gazillions of young readers through HP, and I see no reason why she can't reach those kids again as they get older.  Or, as adults just plain get older than they used to be.  As will be the case for those of us that devoured all seven HP's running as twenty-somethings.  *Ahem*.

I am, to quote Emily Kribs from The Rocky Mountain Collegian, "hellaciously pumped."

Go, JK!




(That yellow book up there is the official release picture.  It looks large, no?)

(Interestingly, Joanne has no middle name, according to Wikipedia.  She took on her maternal grandmother's first name, Kathleen, as her middle initial after the first HP book.    She used Joanne Kathleen Rowling to give evidence in the Leveson Inquiry, which is an ongoing public inquiry of the British Press after the phone hacking bizzo.)

F is for, "Far out, that's Fabulous!"

You know how I'm a member of Darkside DownUnder?  That zany bunch of Australians and New Zealanders who write speculative fiction and are members of Romance Writers of Australia?  Well, they are the BOMB.

It's been true all along, but I thought I would reiterate that there are some very cool authors coming out of Oz, and a very special cavalcade from DSDU.

Never read Keri Arthur and don't mind a bit of hot paranomal romance?  Get thee to a bookstore!  How about Tracey O'hara?  Ditto!  Same goes for Erica Hayes, Denise Rossetti...  I could go on.  And on.

BUT, the reason for this Fabulous post is a brand-new book by a brand-new author.  I've got a brand-new copy on my iPad and I can't wait to get into it.  

It's Kylie Griffin's VENGEANCE BORN, A Novel of the Light Blade, Book 1. 

Isn't it pretty?  

There is no mercy in the demon realm. No escape. In this place of desperation and conflict, anyone who is not pure bred is virtually powerless. Until an unlikely champion is born…

Annika, half-blood daughter of the Na’Reish King, longs for more than her tormented life among her father’s people. Conceived in hatred and bred as a tool of retribution, she’s gifted with a special talent that can heal as well as destroy.

With the Na’Reish vastly outnumbering them, Kalan, a Light Blade warrior, knows the future of humankind depends on him alone. Incursions into human territory and raids for blood-slaves by the Na’Reish Horde have increased. As Chosen-leader, he faces the task of stopping the demons—and convincing the Council of aging Light Blade warriors that change is necessary for survival.

When Annika learns Kalan is a prisoner in her father’s dungeon, her dream of escape seems within reach. She agrees to free him in exchange for his protection once they reach human territory. Now, marked for death for helping him, Annika must learn to trust Kalan as they face not only the perilous journey to the border but enemies within the Council—and discover a shocking truth that could throw the human race into civil war…

One would think that this gorgeous boon from the cover gods would be enough to make one run out and purchase this new release.

I had been slack, and had not done it.  

Then, I was trawling through my google reader, and found That's What I'm Talking About review of VENGEANCE BORN.  I subscribe to Twimom's reviews to look for new books--she reads what I read, and I find some great reads there.

The Five-Star, A+ review tipped me over the edge and I raced out and uploaded Kylie's book.

I've never met Kylie, but she is a frequent participant in the Oz romance scene, she's a teacher and a volunteer for a number of rescue services in her rural area.  On top of this, she blogs many times a week, points the rest of us to cool places on the net and is a font of information.  She is a giver.  She also writes GREAT BOOKS, if Gikany and Una are to be believed. 

And I believe them.  

If you are unconvinced, and I don't believe for a second that you are, go to Kylie's blog for more reviews.  VENGEANCE BORN got five stars/top pick from Night Owl Reviews as well.  Very difficult to argue with that.  

Once you read it and are DYING for more, you don't have long to wait for book two--it's out in July.  *SWOONANDDROOL*

Go forth and discover the Light Blade!  

It promises to be fabulous.  

Things I love...

I've had one of those days where I spend a lot of time saying, "Gee, I LIKED that!"  Wanna hear what has made me happy today?

Regardless, I'll tell you.  :)

1)  Nalini Singh's Psy/Changeling series.  Oh, woo.  

I finished reading KISS OF SNOW at 2am just this morning,  which is book ten in the series.  I have definite faves, but I can GUARANTEE I will be reading the whole lot again.  I like the Angel's Consort series.  BUT I LERV the Psy/Changeling lot.  The world-building is awesome, the characterisation is marvellous, the conflicts are real, the heroes are smokin' hot and the heroines are kick-ass.

I spent much time thinking, "How the heck is Ms Singh going to get X out of this one?" and I just adore that!  The first book, SLAVE TO SENSATION is excellent, and I thought it couldn't get much better.  Then I read CARESSED BY ICE, and KISS OF SNOW.  *Happy sigh*

If you like Gena Showalter, JR Ward & Kresley Cole, you're going to love the Psy/Changelings.

Speaking of which, I've just caught up on Gena Showalter's ALIEN HUNTRESS series.  Also, chock-full-of-rocking-awesome.   I'm totally nailing my yearly Goodreads target with these rip-snorters.

Which brings me to...


2)  My Kindle app on the iDevices.
I can read new books (well, as soon as they are available in Australia, thank you very much GEOGRAPHIC RESTRICTIONS!) immediately.  Yay.  Like KISS OF SNOW.  As soon as it comes out.  All kinds of awesome.


3)  Opera for Mac
Opera is a browser, like Safari, but its quicker.  And aside from saving images (I'm discovering as I construct this post), it's better.  Get it at the desktop app store for Mac.


4)  Moourl.  
It's a very cute URL shortener.  Easy and cute.  What more could you ask?


5) Red vegetable curry.
What?  It was lunch.  It had CASHEWS in it.  Nom nom.


6) SARA news - check!  
I did a mammother SARA News  (kudos to me for not throwing stuff when I was NEARLY DONE and something had a shitefit and I LOST THE LOT, requiring me to start AGAIN!  The upside of which is, I now know where the 'save draft' button is).  Go and have a look - new releases, preorders, a flashfic link and my wardrobe suggestions for Contest Queen, Bec Sampson!

7) Twitter love.  
Still feeling valued, even as I sit in my cold, empty (ish, there are some kids here) house.   Even if I only tweet about my cashew-infested lunch of curry.  Or maybe because of.

8) My scales love me.
I hit a weight loss goal this morning.  Or, rather, re-hit.  Nuance.  Whatevs.

9) Tangled, The Movie
SOOO cute!  Not even slightly massively annoying.

10)  My new boots.
They're black, spiked, fabric with a turnover cuff at the ankle.  They have BUTTONS.  They're goth meets steampunk and I heart them.  When I master walking in them, I'll wear them in public.

11) Tonight there will be time...
to WRITE!  I'm way behind on my target for the week (and last!).  Sorry Rach & Anna!  Buut, I'm so UP today, it'll be FINE!

Wishing you much happy!  E x

What I'm reading...

 Snapshot of today - what I'm reading.  Some I picked up recently (SILVER BORNE, in the boring Aus Kindle release cover, so I put the pretty cover up too), some I've had on the burner for a while (especially anthologies).  What do you think?