This week’s question: What are you currently reading?

At the moment, nada. Zilch. Zero. Nein. I’m hair follicles deep in homework and haven’t seen the light of a good book since last week. Finished Susan Brockmann‘s TALL, DARK AND FEARLESS anthology. Needless to say, I’m hoping for some “me” time with a good book this weekend. My brain is about to explode and my stack of TBR books have been calling my name.

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Technorati Tags: Susan Brockmann, TALL, DARK AND FEARLESS, Parajunkee.com, whatbookisthat

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #49:Who’s your comp titles/authors?

I’ve been knee deep in homework and totally forgot about RTW. So I’m doing it today. Since I’m still working the Draven Atreides series (and will be for the forseeable future, it appears), I would have to say my comp titles/authors would be:

Shannon Greenland‘s The Specialists series: “Secret government spy agency that trains teen agents to go undercover.” Granted, Draven works for a government agency, but it’s not so secret. Well, to her friends it is. And she’s trained to go undercover, true, but not like The Specialists. She works alone, you see, and doesn’t get to travel to any exotic locales. In fact, her type of spying is along the lines of Louise Fitzhugh‘s

Yes, HARRIET THE SPY. It’s local. All the people she’s looking for are in Phoenix, AZ. Yes, it’s a hotbed of crime here. What, you didn’t know? It’s all very tattletale-like. She spies, writes it all down and reports to her handler/guardian. Then sits back and lets the not-so-secret-agency do their thing.

It’s been years since I’ve read HARRIET THE SPY, but it’s one of my favorite warm fuzzies childhood memory. And I’ve never read Shannon’s series, but I’m curious about the teen agents…do they get paid? Are the benefits any good?

Technorati Tags: YA Highway, Shannon Greenland, The Specialists, Louise Fitzhugh, HARRIET THE SPY

This week’s question: What books have bitten you?

Too many adult romance series books to name, but I can tell you that books by SARK always make it onto my self. She’s self-help, but not in that medical, preachy way. It’s more like the fun, colorful, interactive, scribble-outside-the-lines type of way. I’ve talked about this woman plenty on my blog here, but I have to say that every time I leave her presence, I’m invigorated and uplifted.

To join the fun and make now book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

1. Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Host [Parajunkee.com] and anyone else you want to follow on the list
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3. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments.
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You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #44: What’s in your DUFF kit?

DUFF Kits are meant to be comforting little collections that you can use on a relaxing night either alone or with friends.

Well, seeing as how I don’t have “girls night in” occasions my DUFF Kit is something I do when I have “me” time. I actually have two kits, one for summer and one for winter, although two things never change:

1) A stack of adult romance books. These can be my usual Harlequin Blaze or something with a Steamy level of 10.

2) Quiet time and a comfy place. This usually means time when Babendude is hanging out with his BF for a few hours and it’s just me and the cat. Or sometimes just me, cuz the cat’s out playing. The comfy place is my bed. I live the “curl up with a good book” cliche by doing so in the comfiest place in my house.

The Summer DUFF Kit will always include #1 and #2, along with an ice cold glass of water nearby (and no, it’s not just for the steamy scenes. LOL). The Winter DUFF kit will also have #1 and #2, along with a packet of Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate (the kind with the marshmallows).

Nothin’ big, nothin’ fancy, not too much stuff that the lid won’t close. I’m simple that way. So, what’s in your DUFF kit?

Technorati Tags: DUFF

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #43: What’s the best book you’ve read last month?

BEDEVILED ANGEL
by Annette Blair

A WORKS LIKE MAGICK NOVEL
Book Two

At the Works Like Magick employment agency in Salem, Massachusetts, matching clients in need with magical temps is a piece of cake, especially when the temp happens to be heaven-sent…

In a building collapse, Chance Godricson is meant to live and Queisha Saint-Denis to die, but he sent her up his escape tunnel before him, and it collapsed behind her. At that moment, he became her guardian angel. Now Queisha’s about to face the most difficult challenge of her life and Chance wants to be there for her. Enter Angus, a fellow angel, who knocks Chance back to earth, and to Queisha, without permission. Will the archangels let Chance stay? For how long? And at what cost?

When Queisha Saint-Denis agreed to be a surrogate mother for a jet-setting–but childless–couple, she never dreamed she’d see a return on her gift. Literally. But now she’s looking at two adorable orphans, who come with a lot of baggage: there’s a battle brewing over who “inherits” them and their huge fortune, plus an unwanted (and alarmingly attractive) guardian, whom she’s sure has been hired by the dueling family members to keep an eye on her more than the children.

Chance Godricson is keeping an eye on Queisha. in fact, he’s her guardian angel. Ever since he gave his life to save hers, Chance has felt an undeniable connection to Queisha. And now that he’s back on Earth, in her house, surrounded by two scene-stealing moppets and a woman he finds irresistible, Chance is about to discover that helping Queisha and still staying angelic is not going to be easy…

For the record, Annette Blair is one of my favorite authors. If she had a blog, it’d be on my blog roll over there. (Hint, Hint, Annette. Get a blog. LOL). I really enjoyed reading the “Witch” Series and even gave her a glowing review for one of the books. BEDEVILED is Book Two in a new series called Works Like Magick. I really enjoyed Book One, NAKED DRAGON, and was hoping to get another dragon book this time, but was pleasantly surprised when the story was about angels instead. Guardian angels.

Totally diggin’ the concept.

I love the idea of having a guardian angel watching over you from the minute you’re born and waiting to meet you on the other side when you die.

I love the idea that if you almost die, it’s not a doctor that brings you back, but your guardian angel.

I love the idea that both humans and animals have guardian angels.

I love the idea that guardian angels have rainbow-colored wings and each layer stands for something (i.e. gold = love)

I love the idea that there are different types of guardian angels, depending on how you died, and that each and every one of them has a special job in Heaven.

I love the idea that someone’s last words to you can become the motto you live by.

I love the idea that my guardian angel could be as gorgeous as Chance Godricson. (Seriously. Take a look at that cover again).

Just like the blurb states, Chance became Quiesha’s guardian angel after he dies in her place. Chance’s last words to her inspired her to become a surrogate mother for a jet-setting couple. When they die in a freak accident, the twin girls she gave birth to end up in her care. And Chance, who’s been in love with her for years (even though it’s forbidden), gets kicked back down to Earth to help her out and deal with a shit-storm of a custody battle.

The world Annette created for these four people (Quiesha, Chance, and the twins, Lace and Skye) just pulled me in and made me want to stay a while. Quiesha is this brave half-Kenyan/half-white soul who has to overcome her insecurities about her parenting abilities. It’s not that she doesn’t want or love the girls—quite the contrary—Quiesha just has this teeny, tiny, itty, bitty, okay, it’s a pretty large, problem: she’s agoraphobic. So much so that she’s secluded herself in a big house. On an island.

To be honest, if I were agoraphobic, I would never want to leave my house if it looked like Queisha’s: multiple bedrooms and each one of them painted a different color. It even had a dance studio. With a disco ball, people. How cool is that?

And then there’s Chance. Mr. Hottie on a Stick who’s really one thing but comes to Queisha in a different capacity: as a cook.

I felt sympathy for the girls, who ended up with parents that spent their time around the world rather than with their children. And I found myself rooting for Quiesha and silently encouraging her as she faced her fears. Agoraphobia is a very real and very crippling disease and although it was a subplot, it never overwhelmed the rest of the story. I think it was a great book and I’m really enjoying this series and am looking forward to the forthcoming books. Maybe you’ll like her books, too. Head on over to her website and check out all her other stories.

JUST A REMINDER: There’s still time to add “your two cents” to Chapter 5 of A Royale Pain: A Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Novel. It’s the final chapter I’ll be posting for my class project and comments close on Sunday.

Technorati Tags: BEDEVILED ANGEL, Annette Blair, A WORKS LIKE MAGICK NOVEL, NAKED DRAGON

I am so tired of school right now it’s not even funny.

Today, I busted out an assignment two hours before I had to meet my mentor. Didn’t give a damn if it sucked or not. She said I did good.

One–or both–of my mentors for my Fall semester may or may not be approved by my core faculty. I was worried about it for, like, a day.

Now, I don’t give a damn. I could probably use the break.

I have a 10-page research paper due on the 5th and I haven’t really started on it. Earlier this month, I had to change topics when I couldn’t find enough academic resources. I stressed about it.

But now, I don’t give a damn.

The summer semester ends Sept 6th. The fall semester starts 10 days after that.

Right now, that little window of Education Freedom is lookin’ like a slice of heaven.

I’ve got stack of 9 books in my TBR pile and I’m gonna spend that free time reading my ASS off.

Technorati Tags: Carolyn Brown

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #37: What’s your favorite reading memory?

My favorite reading memories involve being read to. I’m currently reading Mem Fox’s READING MAGIC: WHY READING ALOUD TO OUR CHILDREN WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER for my ACL class. I have to write a documented essay on the importance of reading and thought how appropriate this was for this week’s RTW.

Mrs Yates.

5th grade.

Huffaker Elementary School

Reno, NV.

She was a little heavy-set, short in height, with hair dyed a light reddish tinge. She always wore too much make-up (rougey cheeks, vampire-white foundation, caked-on mascara, bright red lipstick) and ate tuna fish sandwiches or sardines. My best memory of this woman was when she read to us. By the end of the day, her lipstick had worn off to the point where all that was left was the lip liner. LOL. For some reason that fascinated me and occasionally I would watch her lips move. She would take off her shoes and walk up and the down aisles. I would close my eyes and let my senses take over:

The swish of her pantyhose.

The faint scent of her “old lady” perfume.

The jangle of her bracelets.

The rhythmic turning of the pages (she used to lick her finger before turning them).

The hypnotic up and down cadence of her voice.

I don’t remember any of the books she read to us, but she was amazing at reading them aloud.

Another read-aloud memory:

Mrs. Hornbaker

7th grade

Cocopah Middle School

Scottsdale, AZ

Short in stature, short gray hair, somewhat mannish (now that I think back on it, she was probably gay), blue eyes that bulged a bit, round cheeks that sounded like she was holding something in them every time she spoke. She too used to walk up and down the aisles as she introduced us to S.E. Hinton’s THE OUTSIDERS.

I’m addicted to books now. Totally. Addicted. If I had a stack of books, I could read all damn day. I have, in fact, done that at one time or another. This is, in part, thanks to my parents. But I also have to give credit to teachers like Mrs. Yates and Mrs. Hornbaker who made it even more enjoyable on a different level.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Mem Fox, READING MAGIC: WHY READING ALOUD TO OUR CHILDREN WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER, Huffaker Elementary School, Reno, NV, Cocopah Middle School, Scottsdale, AZ, S.E. Hinton, THE OUTSIDERS

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #35: What was your favorite book for the month of June?

A Boy Named Shel by Lisa Rogak

For my ACL course this semester, we have to read an autobiography about a children’s author. The assignment itself isn’t due until July 25th, but I wanted to get a head start so I chose to read about Shel Silverstein. Where the Sidewalk Ends is one of my favorite children’s books and it was given to me by my parents when I was young; I still have it. I actually just finished the autobiography today and am just….blown away. Even though he was most famous for his children’s books, he was first and foremost, a cartoonist (he was a longtime contributor to Playboy). He was also an accomplished singer (although he didn’t have the right voice for it), songwriter (he wrote “A Boy Named Sue” which was first sung by Johnny Cash), playwright (The Lady or The Tiger Show), and screenwriter (collaborated with director David Mamet on the movie THINGS CHANGE in 1998 starring Don Ameche and Joe Montegna). He never married, but fathered two children (his daughter died when she was 11 of a brain aneuerysm).

Last week, I was telling my best friend about all the stuff I’d learned about him so far and she said, “It sounds like you’re having a love affair with this author.” I laugh about it now because she was so right. This man was the ultimate creative being. He dabbled in every creative medium across the board and was very successful at all of them. Shel was a hardcore life observer and everything—and everyone—he came into contact with was inspiration for his work. He would get so in the zone with his creativity that if he wasn’t near a piece of paper to record his ideas, he would find whatever he could at that point in time: his arms, his hands, his clothes, a tablecloth, etc. He’d lived such a full, rich life by the time he passed away of a massive heart attack in May 1999 (he was born in 1930), I was a tad jealous.

He’s the male version of SARK, who’s one of my favorite authors. She has such a presence about her, a positive aura, that every time I left her company, I felt uplifted.

I think I would’ve felt the same had I ever met him.

He was just an amazing, amazing person, who touched so many lives—readers and friends alike. After reading this, I wanted to go out and buy more books that he wrote. As a writer, I liked this quote the best:

“You should never explain the philosophy behind anything you do, it’s not important. If your work is weak and needs to be explained, it isn’t clear enough.”

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, A Boy Named Shel, Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Playboy, A Boy Named Sue, Johnny Cash, The Lady or The Tiger Show, David Mamet, THINGS CHANGE, Don Ameche, Joe Montegna, SARK

After reading Shel Silverstein’s autobiography for my ACL class, I would life swap with him. But only certain parts:

~ Endless travel

~Homes in different places

~ Camping out in the conference room of my publisher to take over the production of my book (if I was going the traditional route, that is) and have people be on Celise Patrol (glorified gofers that would bring me whatever I needed)

~ Worldwide adoration of YA fans

~ To have ideas come so ridiculously often that if I don’t have any paper around, I have to use what I got–whether it be my arms are the tablecloth at the restaurant where I’m eating.

~ To leave a million dollar legacy that includes: continuing royalties, books translated in 20 different languages and sold well over 20 million copies.

~ To know that I lived my life to the fullest, doing what I love most, and not have any regrets whatsoever.

Technorati Tags: Sunday Scribblings, Shel Silverstein

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #25: What’s the best book you’ve read this month?

I’m warning you right now, it’s not YA. LOL

I finished reading Instant Temptation by Jill Shavis about a week or so ago.

T.J. Wilder is the perfect package of breathtaking adventure and raw sex appeal. Even better, he’s about to reconnect with the one woman he’s never been able to forget…

Get Your Pulse Racing

To Harley, the landscape around Wishful, California, is exhilarating, untamed, and more than a little dangerous. The same could be said for T.J. Wilder, who’s invited himself along on her trek to study a rare coyote. Harley’s career is riding on this trip, and she doesn’t need a stubborn, incredibly sexy distraction. But T.J. is a professional guide who knows when to stay back and when to provide invaluable expertise-just like he’s done since they were in high school. And Harley, as usual, is torn between throttling him and giving in to the raw attraction that’s been smoldering all these years.

T.J. knows how proud and capable Harley is, but he’s damned sure not letting her put herself at risk when there are illegal hunters in the area. She needs him, with the same soul-stirring urgency that he’s always craved her. And here, in this beautiful place days from civilization, he’ll finally have a chance to prove it-over and over again…

Jill is one of favorite adult romance authors. She’s in my blog roll over there, so be sure to go on over and check her out. She’s hilarious. I love reading about Frat Boy’s antics and her need for cookies during tough situations. LOL. I have a nice collection of her books on my shelf and read pretty much everything she puts out. What I love about her books, in general, not just this particular one, is that she describes the guys so well.

With this book in particular, readers are whopped up side the head time and again with how GORGEOUS T.J. Wilder is. Even though we see him through Harley’s eyes, the man is drop dead sexy/gorgeous. But it’s Jill’s words, of course, that make him that way. Whenever she described him, the whole package, including whatever he was wearing in a certain scene, I could clearly see him in my mind.

And day-am, was he gorgeous!

While reading this book, there were many times I wanted to be Harley. I found myself looking at the cover from time to time (that’s why it’s gonna take a lot for me to ever buy an eReader), wishing I could see the whole package and not just a head shot.

Because the man is FOINE. I know I keep mentioning that, but truly, on the Taster’s Choice Hotness scale of 1 to 10, he’s a 30.

All of Jill’s books are like this. You “see” her characters so clearly, you could look up and find them in the room with you. They’re that tangible. And me, with my overactive imagination anyway, find that I have to have a Drool Bowl nearby whenever I read her books.

This is the third book in a trilogy about a trio of brothers who run an outdoor adventure business, Wilder Adventures, and I really enjoyed reading about all the brothers.

Because they’re all so freakin’ gorgeous!

You rock, Jill Shalvis!

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Instant Temptation, Jill Shavis, GORGEOUS