romance – Page 2

A Whirlwind of Books (Wouldn’t that be cool!)

Since I’ve been in the process of moving the site for the past week or so, I haven’t had a chance to update you all on my latest literary conquests! So here they are:

Last week I read Wallbanger by Alice Clayton. If you like smut, especially funny smut, you really can’t get any better than Alice Clayton. I aspire to write smut this hilarious! Thank you, Alice Clayton for writing this book and then for writing four more in the series so I don’t have to say goodbye to your comedy genius just yet!
Of course, before I go on to read the rest of the series, I had to finish up some library books whose impending due dates and lack of renewal opportunities rushed them to the top of the list. One of these was You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero. It was transformative. Every time I read a passage I thought, that’s right, I am awesome, I can do this, I can be the best me I can be! Of course, as with most books, I’ve only retained about 30% of what I read. But that 30% is remarkably useful.

The section that really spoke to me was about money. I am someone who can get by on very little money. I am also someone who has lived my life up until now viewing money as the root of all evils. What Jen Sincero points out is that money isn’t an enemy or a friend, it isn’t anything really until we apply the emotional, cultural, and psychological aspects of our interactions with and surrounding it to the picture. Money is not the root of all evil. I don’t have to be afraid of making it or not making it. But I do need to accept that there is a certain amount of money that I need to accomplish what I want (improving living situation, eating healthy, giving back, financing my writing, etc.). That amount is my goal. Not the bare minimum I can live on, not the money I’d make if I sold out my dreams, the amount I need to accomplish what I want to do. So I’m going to try out this new attitude and see what happens.

I am currently devouring Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari so look for that review coming up in a few days!

This Month I’ve Read…

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While trying to find a nearby apple orchard that also has a corn maze, I realized I haven’t posted about the Julie James series I am reading (those two things are related through a series of mental leaps I don’t expect you to follow). I have been devouring these books like pumpkin donuts all month, one right after the other, they are that good.

I met Julie James almost two years ago at the RWA Chicago-North Spring Fling conference. I got the fourth book in the series and had it signed by her. Though it took me a while to get to read it (my to-read shelf having expanded to an entire bookcase over the past year), I still remember what drew me to her books in the first place. It was the way she described the opening of book one, Something About You, in which the heroine is kept awake all night by a marathon booty call taking place in the next room – a booty call that ends in murder.

Obviously I had to read it. And the next one and the next. I’m now on the sixth and most recent book. I’m not sure what I’ll do when I finish it except hope that there’ll be another released soon!

Check out Julie’s books for yourself by following the link here!

There’s Some Weird Stuff Out There

By celiamulder42@gmail.com

This is the beginning of another blog post series I’m embarking on. In this series I will fill you in on some of the strange and unusual sub-genres that exist within romance. You don’t have to be a romance reader to know the basic ones – contemporary, historical, chick lit, erotica, etc. Those aren’t what I’m talking about. I’m not even talking about the cross genres, YA paranormal romance for example, or stand alone books that don’t fit into any category. I’m talking about sub-genres that have multiple books within them, as in more than one author thought it was a good idea to write this type of romance novel.

The first category I’ll be exploring is one that, if you know me at all IRL, you’ll have heard me talk about because I cannot get over that fact that this is a thing: Dinosaur Erotica. As in books that feature a human-dinosaur relationship.

Let that sink in for a moment. Human-dinosaur romantic/sexual relationship.

Here are some of the books in this sub-genre:

Taken by the T-Rex by Christie Sims (she is actually dinosaur erotica’s most prolific author and has a whole range of books about a whole range of dinos)

Space Raptor Butt Invasion by Chuck Tingle (a series of dino/man erotica set in locations from outer space to a corporate boardroom)

Seized by the T-Rex by Roxy Stone (a dino horror erotica)

A Billionaire Dinosaur Forced Me Gay by Hunter Fox (the second book is set in space)

Jurassic Jane Eyre by Carrie Sessarego (this is exactly what you think it is, Jane Eyre travels back in time to the Jurassic period)

And many, many more. Most with ridiculous, overt, pun-filled titles. I can’t say I’d recommend any of these books but they do serve as a fun tidbit to share at parties when the conversation lulls.

I do have to give a special shout-out of to Smart Bitches Trashy Books for first introducing me to dinosaur erotica. My life has never been the same.

This Week I Read…

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I completely spaced out and forgot to post this Tuesday. I was sitting on the couch, thinking there was something I needed to do. I decided it was take a nap. So now here I am, posting my this week’s reads on Thursday (don’t even ask about yesterday, I have no excuse).

I finished the Princess Diaries! The last two books were so good I couldn’t stop reading. I spent all of July 4th with my face buried in book 10.

First up there was Princess Diaries IX: Princess Mia, then Princess Diaries X: Forever Princess.

And finally, the one I’d been waiting to read for months, the reason I started this reading adventure – The Princess Diaries XI: Royal Wedding.

I was curious to see if, years after the last book was released, Meg Cabot could keep the story alive. And you know what? She did. It was like visiting an old friend you have n’t seen in a while and picking up as though no time at all had passed. I loved seeing what happens to Mia (and everyone else) after high school. It was fun and funny with just a hint of the very ridiculous.

This Week I Read…June 30th Edition

By celiamulder42@gmail.com

Welcome back to another edition of “This Week I Read.” First up was, surprise, The Princess Diaries Volume VII: Party Princess by Meg Cabot. I’m moving into the books I don’t remember as well, which only adds to the adventure. I mean, how did I forget Grandmere’s play?! It is a triumph my dear, a triumph.

I did take a break from the Princess Diaries this week because I watched the movie The Duff. I read the book, The Duff by Kody Keplinger, a few months ago so I was excited about the film. It did not live up to my expectations at all. See, the brilliant thing about the book is it deals with real issues, not issues adults think are appropriate for teenagers. The book is full of swearing, sex, alcoholism, bullying and more. The movie takes on some of that, well the bullying part, but makes it a cliche commentary on high school hierarchies that is disappointing and ineptly dealt with. The controversial material that makes the book one of the best contemporary YA novels I’ve ever read is dumbed down and ignored. No one is going to argue that cyberbullying is ok. But seventeen year olds who hate each other having meaningless sex and hiding it from their friends? Things just got interesting. So, obviously, I had to reread the book .

This Week I Read…

By celiamulder42@gmail.com

You are about to see how busy my life had been over the past week:

I only read one book.

Gasp.

The Princess Diaries Vol. 2: Princess in the Spotlight by Meg Cabot. This has always been one of my favorites in the series. In fact the first three books are, in my opinion, the best. Volume 2 in particular, though, has lots of wonderful early 00’s pop culture references that perfectly align with my own middle school/high school memories. It’s one of those books that will always be special to me because of when I first read it and my teenage-hood nostalgia.

What did you read this week?

RT – The Photo Edition

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Tamora Pierce and I, hanging out in the bar, talking about Alanna!

Meg Cabot and I at her Princess Diaries Fan Party.

My advance copy of the last Princess Diaries book that I won in a raffle.

My fellow aspiring authors and I, all dressed up and ready for the Steampunk Party.

My handmade fascinator from the Flaunt Your Fascinator party with the lovely hostess, Eloisa James.

Just part of my brand new book collection! The rest arrived in the mail yesterday and it was a perfect early birthday present. Now I need to see about getting a second bookshelf to fit all my new acquisitions.

RT Top Ten

By celiamulder42@gmail.com

Top Ten RT Booklovers Convention Moments (in no particular order)

1. Making a new friend on the shuttle from the airport. This then led to making many more new friends. By Wednesday we’d formed a posse. By Friday we made plans to all come back next year!

2. On Saturday I was walking through the bar when I happened upon Tamora Pierce, sitting alone and reading. I was all ready to keep going but my friend stopped me and persuaded me to ask for a photo with her. I am so glad I did. She told me about her process writing Alanna and her early days of trying to get published.

3. As I sat in the bar on Friday night, wearing my Princess Diaries tiara, I saw Meg Cabot. She noticed me too, called me a princess, and gave me a royal, princess wave.

4. Erica O’Rourke, a published author I met at the RWA Chicago North Spring Fling conference last year, offered to help me reach my goal of pitching a finished manuscript at next year’s conference. She said she’d be running registration the first night and would ask to see my book.

5. In one of the panels, an author made a careless comment that was potentially insulting to many of the audience members. Cherry Adair called her out on it and masterfully defended not only her own writing but that of all the writers everywhere.

6. Many of the panels surprised me by how good they were. In particular, the panel on writing LGBTQ characters and the BDSM panel blew me away. I heard from authors who were passionate and knowledgeable about their genre and their craft.

7. Heather Graham’s supernatural western party was fun, campy, and highly entertaining. I especially loved it when a little girl in a tutu and rain boots won the costume contest.

8. The comedy panel was everything I wanted and more. If I can write anything even half as funny as the women on that panel, I’ll be doing well. Any of their books I haven’t read yet are shooting to the top of my TBR list.

9. Being the crafty gal I am, I couldn’t resist making fascinators with Eloisa James. It was a delightful hour filled with ribbons, glitter, fake flowers, tulle, and historical romance authors!

10. I spent another spectacular hour with my favorite bloggers, the women from Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, knitting and talking about Outlander. A knitting book chat with my favorite snarky bloggers? It honestly doesn’t get better than that.

Support Beams

1 Comment / By celiamulder42@gmail.com

Last night I had a dream that my friends wouldn’t be my friends anymore. I told them I really needed them and they just shrugged and disappeared. I try not to read too much into dreams since the majority of mine are about dinosaurs who are about to eat me. No doubt it’s all metaphorical but I’m always just happy to wake up and realize it wasn’t real.

On another note, I need to start a writing group. There are some groups in town already but I’d like to have one that focuses on romance writing. Then I don’t have to explain to every new person why I’m choosing to write romance, they’ll already be kindred spirits. Any suggestions?