Have you ever attended an event that while you were looking forward to the event you were a bit nervous about what would happen while you were there, and would it be an enjoyable time for all? That’s how I felt going into last weekend and the Readers’n’Ritas event. On Friday as the committee was putting the finishing touches on goodie bags we received a once in a lifetime opportunity. Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love who were in town for both Readers’n’Ritas and another event the same weekend had no dinner plans, and would love to have dinner with the committee. Wow! What an opportunity for true Kenyon/Love fans of which I really wasn’t. Dinner was at a fabulous place near my home, and to which I had never been. Now I’m wondering how I can get my family back there once again, but I digress. Having the chance to sit and chat almost one on one with these two wonderful ladies and hearing their stories of writing success has me thinking zillions of fans can’t be wrong! What am I missing by not having these authors in my collection? The Readers’n’Ritas event gave me the opportunity to not only…

This past weekend I did something I can only remember doing one other time. I started a book and did not finish it. Worse yet, was the fact it was a review book. I always feel the need to finish a book I guess I have what might be considered an optimistic outlook that the book surely has to get better, thus my continued need to read. The book I was reading for review was a bound and printed ARC (Advanced Reader’s Copy) and full of typos which as you know from a previous blog I don’t usually notice, but these were so glaring that they totally prevented me from being able to get a good reading flow going. My second problem with this particular book was that the storyline seemed to go from one idea to another without any really rhythm. These two issues made me decide to ask the person in charge of reviews if I truly had to read and review this book. Luckily for me she did release from having to read this book, and I can move on to the next. Unlike what I think most people will do I think I shall put a…

In the last few weeks some authors are being discussed quite a bit in a few of my yahoo groups. Naturally, I expect to hear about authors and their latest works through my groups, but what surprises me about the ones I’m hearing a lot about is that people are just discovering them, and because they enjoyed the newest title having to go on a back list hunt. One of these authors is Robyn Carr. I have to admit to being somewhat new to the Carr party. I once read a book for review (Down By The River) and didn’t enjoy it at all. What I didn’t’ know at the time was that it was part of a series, and the third in the series. Had I known that I might have been a bit more lenient in how I thought of it. Years passed and I had the opportunity to review her new book, Virgin River. Since I knew it was the beginning of a series I thought here is a way for this author to make my auto buy list. I was of course wowed by what I read, and told one and all you must read this…

For the last couple of weeks I’ve been reading the Bakery Sisters Trilogy by Susan Mallery. People who know me best know that I love connected stories. I tend to horde the first and second book until the third becomes available, and then read them back to back to back.While for a short series that will release quickly this is a great plan, but for a longer series such as the In Death books this does not work. When Naked In Death by J. D. Robb first came out I bought the book even though I didn’t think it was truly my thing. I saved it knowing there would be more to follow. What happened? I’m sure you know. I kept collecting expecting an end to this series so I could finally begin to read, but that end is still nowhere in my line of vision. Finally I saw a website that was beginning a book of the month read, and offered people several choices to choose from, and amongst the choices Naked In Death. A few friends and I decided to all vote for Naked In Death and get one book or perhaps more should our choice win out…

Recently my husband and I had to begin carpooling. Our youngest son achieved one of his life’s goals…he got a driver’s license. That meant he could drive to school rather than horror of horrors take the bus. It also meant that because he was now 16 he could enroll in work-study and get out of school early. While he thinks he’s really hot stuff he hasn’t given much if any thought to the impact of being a driver without free access to a vehicle. So that’s how my husband and I have come to carpooling. Today as we were driving in, and passed the light rail station, then we had to stop for a train, and as it passed I could see that someone had their bicycle with them. I turned to my husband and asked, “Do people often have their bikes with them?” See, even though I drive him to work he does take the train home in the evening because we can’t mesh our afternoon schedules as easily as we do our mornings. He said, “Yes, they get off the train and then bike to their final destination.” Ok…so bikes on the train got me to thinking about…

When my TBR blog was posted last week I went back and read it. I was so embarrassed to have my name attached to it because of the mistakes I found where I obviously hadn’t gone back and proofread it. This got me to thinking about when I read a book with poor editing, and how it can pull a reader from the story. I recently read a galley of Overnight Sensation by Karen Foley, and I was amazed at the number of mistakes I caught. It pulled me from the story, and truly affected my enjoyment of it. I didn’t mention it in my review, because I’m confident that in the editing process the mistakes were caught, because if I were to be honest I would tell you that for me to notice it has to be blaring, so I’m positive that a professional editor or proofreader would catch the errors and have the author correct them. I have no doubt that the final copies that readers are buying from their local bookseller are perfect, and that readers will thoroughly enjoy Overnight Sensation. I am not trying to single out Ms. Foley’s work by any means, but this is…

I have to say I love the Internet! I learn such interesting things, and things I never knew I was truly interested in until someone either in one of my Yahoo groups mentions it, or I see it posted on a bulletin board at one of the websites I like to visit. This week what is grabbing my attention is To Be Read piles, from here on out to be known as TBR’s. TBR’s are mentioned a lot as I visit different places, and they provoke a slew of different emotions from people. Some people I’ve noticed are proud of their TBR’s and will gladly tell you all about how they have it organized, how much time they spend perusing it, and how it’s taken over their homes. Others are aghast that people allow books to have free range over their homes and lives, preferring to limit themselves to a small number. Me? Well, my TBR is vast and definitely has overtaken the space in my small home. I unfortunately don’t have it organized well at all, and when I see or read about people who have alphabetized or arranged by publisher, or by size their TBR piles I want…

Recently I celebrated a birthday. How I wondered would this year be celebrated? The answer to that was really very simple. Go to the DFW Tea Group book dinner that is held monthly. Good food, good drinks (even if I don’t drink), wonderful conversation, and the highlight of the evening getting to chat via telephone with an author. Many years ago, don’t ask how many because truth be told I really don’t know, I accidentally discovered the DFW Tea Group. My first event was interesting, but I was an unknown stepping into a world that was as well established as any writer who writes an ongoing series might have. As would be expected the members of the group had to scope me out, and at the same time I had to be both outgoing, and shy so as to ensure my spot at future events. Now years later I’m a long established member of the group, and look forward to finding out what exciting events I’m going to learn about because of the DFW Tea Group. Do you want to learn about us? Go to www.dfwtea.com/ We really are a friendly group and always looking for new members. Anyway I…