I know there are a lot of vamp books being released these days, but nothing has grabbed me by the throat and sunk its fangs in deep, not letting go until the last page. (Yes, I’m feeling dramatic. 
Where have all the really great vampire romances gone?
Let me preface this by saying I own all of Christine Feehan’s, Sherrilyn Kenyon’s, Angela Knight’s, and Emma Holly’s vamp books. (wg)
I’ve tried reading Laurell K. Hamilton, who I think is a very good writer, but the stories are not my thing. I picked up Rosemary Laurey’s latest, but I haven’t started it yet. I loved the first book in her vamp series. I also have ALL the Charlaine Harris books. I don’t tend to like books written entirely in first person. I can’t get into the story for some reason. There are exceptions, but they are RARE. I do have Sunshine in my TBR pile, even though it’s not a romance.
So have any vampire or werewolf romance books blown you away recently? If so, please share the titles.
Archive for July, 2005
After viewing several other blogs, I can see I’m not alone with my short attention span. I’ve bought several new books lately and haven’t been able to pick any of them up. Are the books bad? Absolutely not! I just can’t seem to get into any of them. I’m not sure what’s going on. I’ve even tried switching to different subgenres to see if that would help. It didn’t. :-/ So I ask myself, what’s happening? Why isn’t anything (ie any romance) holding my interest?
To be honest, I’m not sure. It may be because I’m so submersed in working on my partial that I don’t want to read anything else. It might be because I just finished a book for EC. I REALLY don’t know, but I HATE it. My TBR pile continues to grow with books I want to read, yet can’t seem to get past the first page or two.
I’ve managed to read a few things on my e-book reader, but they’ve mainly been old favorites from my keeper shelf. The only other books I’ve been able to get into are action adventure books like ‘Link’ by Walt Becker and ‘Meg’ by Steve Alten.
If you’ve been stuck with your reading, how did you get out of the ‘nothing sounds good’ rut? Help! I’m about to be swallowed by my TBR pile.
For anyone who wants to know what being a writer is like go to Vanessa’s blog and watch the cartoon in the latest entry.
I’ve kept ‘mainly’ quiet as I’ve read all the ‘digs’ at Ellora’s Cave. This recent one truly knots my panties since it combines EC with the latest RWA controversies. I believe everyone has a right to their opinion, but to state it with so LITTLE information as if it’s fact is unjust to say the least. I truly do not understand why so many ‘big name’ authors are threatened by EC’s success. I suppose EC is an easy scapegoat for the changes in the publishing industry.
What am I talking about? You’ll need to go to Paperback Writer’s Blog (under PBW speaks) to see because I refuse to link to the site behind the maligning comments.
I’m back from my dentist appointment. Managed to get my teeth cleaned and my new crown, next up a butt-load of fillings. I told the dentist I want them ALL done at once. I know I’m going to be sore as sh*t, but at least it’ll be over. I don’t need to eat anyway…*ggg*
I sent my synopsis off to one of my critique partners. Bless her heart, she sent it back to me with two versions. I love her, man. Sniffle. LOL! All that’s left is a few tweaks to the chapters and I should have it mailed off by Monday. Then I have to make myself forget about it or I’ll go insane. I plan to work around seeing movies this weekend. Got to see Fantastic Four and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 
I’m still waiting to be bowled over by a movie. Where’s this year’s Pirates of the Caribbean?
I’m going to point you to an article on Romancing the Blog called ‘Pride in Romance’. It’s written by two men, who write gay romance novels. Why do I want you to read it? I think the points they bring up are good given the recent attempt at changes in the RWA. Read the article then ask yourself, do these two people NOT belong in the RWA due to limiting definitions of what makes a romance? I don’t think so.
These men are not only talking about being proud of what you write, but also about presenting loving relationships no matter what your gender/sexual preference. I find it ironic that two men, who belong to a minority that’s being viciously persecuted, have a better outlook about romance and writing than a romance organization that claims to be protecting its members. WTF?
I hope that with Passionate Inks’ installation into RWA things will begin to change and broaden. Only time will tell. I guess we’ll have to see what happens at National this year.
I should probably start by saying I’m not really a Vegas type person. What do I mean by that? I don’t really like to gamble because I hate losing money. (And it’s funds that could’ve been spent on books.;) I’m not into crowds. We can thank 14 years as a flight attendant for that one. I prefer quiet places over loud, etc. All that said, I had a better time in Vegas than I thought I would.
Why? You ask. I finally figured out what I need to do in order to enjoy the town. For me to enjoy Vegas, I have to stay in a nice hotel, see the shows, and go to the spas.
As I mentioned in an earlier blog, we managed to hit the Guggenheim Hermitage Museum while we stayed at the Venetian. (The hotel was lovely, the staff courteous, and I’d highly recommend staying there if you’re ever in town.) The Guggenheim is currently hosting ‘The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt’. They didn’t have a lot of pieces, but what they did have was impressive. (Yes, I’m that much of a geek that I’d go to Vegas and visit a museum. *ggg*)
I also mentioned seeing Le Reve in a previous post. I cannot get over how good this show was. I can still hear the music playing in my head. It’s the only show I’ve seen that hit the senses. It felt like watching a book open to a page and come to life before your eyes. Truly Fantastic!!! We’re currently waiting for them to release the CD. (The music IS that haunting.)
On Sat. we went to see the Blue Man Group (who are moving from the Luxor to the Venetian soon). This show was also entertaining, but in a completely different manner. It’s much more of an audience participation thing. I thought it was fun, but I preferred the other performance.
Vegas is one of those places that you can find just about anything you’re looking for, whether it be gambling, shows, amusement parks, or spas. The town is full of wonderful restaurants. They’re definitely pricey, but great quality. You certainly can’t go wrong with a visit. Like New York, everyone should see Las Vegas at least once in their lifetime.
I am beyond tired. (And no, it’s not from all the gambling.) I gambled for about five minutes before I was bored out of my mind. I’m not exactly a Vegas dream customer. (wg) Anyway, I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow. It’s good to be home. I missed home. Sniffle. I think it might have missed me too. Hope you all had a fab week. Indepth coverage tomorrow.
Wow! I actually didn’t know if this would work. I’m writing this from the Wynn hotel in Vegas. We had a wonderful time at Le Reve. It’s the new show by Franco Dragone who created a lot of the Cirque du Soleils. It’s honestly the best show I’ve EVER seen. Tomorrow, we’re going to see the Blue Man performance.
We aren’t gamblers, so we try to entertain ourselves with shows. Today, we made the mistake of riding a simulator/live action ride. Spent the better part of two hours afterwards trying to get our stomachs back. Ginger ale anyone?
Bellagio’s fountains were magnificent. Hope to catch a pirate performance in front of Treasure Island. Tonight, we’re going to grab some dinner and relax. Dh’s tired from teaching and I’ve managed to rewrite a synopsis three times in three days. 
You didn’t think I was just relaxing here, did you? I’ll be home soon. Peace and Warm Brownies.
Well I’m off to Vegas tomorrow. I’ll be gone for several days, so the blog will probably not get updated unless I can get online while I’m there. I’d planned to make this a mini-vacation, but that’s not going to happen. I need to take writing work with me. Sigh. Oh well, it won’t be all work and no play. It is Vegas after all.
I hope everyone has a wonderful fourth of July. I’ll catch you when I get back. Ciao!
Okay, the movie didn’t exactly suck, but I won’t be going out of my way to see it again. Dakota Fanning, who plays the daughter, delivers a very believable performance. The graphics are fine. The pacing was a little slow for my tastes. My biggest problem (and no, it wasn’t with Tom Cruise) was that the crowds rarely acted like a typical crowd. I’ll give an example. Big hole in ground, something moving beneath ground, ground starts to shake, people take two steps back and wait, big alien bursts from ground, people take three steps back. Is anyone running? No! They stand there until the alien starts firing on them.
Now, I can understand being in shock. Goodness knows I would be if something popped up out of the ground in front of me. BUT, to be honest, I’m not sure I would’ve stuck around long enough to see the aliens pop up out of the ground. My guess is I would have pulled a Shaggy and Scooby. Keep in mind, during this scene buildings were splitting, the earth was shifting, and cars were flipping through the air. NO ONE RAN. I didn’t expect everyone to run, but no one??? Huh? I would’ve forgiven the movie if that would have occurred once in the beginning before anyone knew what was really happening, but it occurred EVERY time. Hell, even cows will stampede if they’re spooked. All I have to say is Fantastic Four better be more entertaining.
