Who I'm Stalking

Recently, I've been on a huge historical kick. The two books I just finished were by authors I had read before, but for some reason, I hadn't picked up one of their books in a while...

My first pick 

What A Wicked Earl Wants (How could you NOT choose a book that had both wicked and Earl in the same sentence? I mean really? No brainer)

WILL A RAKE'S WICKED WAYS
Andrew Carrington, Earl of Bellingham, believes in being a gentleman, whether it's fishing a soggy stranger out of the Thames or assisting a fetching lady into his bed. If the stranger becomes a friend and the lady a mistress, all the better. He certainly welcomes the opportunity to help Laura Davenport, a dazzling young widow with a rebellious stepson. Her gratitude, he hopes, will take an amorous form. But from the moment he sets foot in her drawing room, he gets far more than he bargained for ... 

LEAD THE LADY ASTRAY?

It was a moment of desperation. On the brink of losing her stepson, Laura turned to the notorious Lord Bellingham for help. Suddenly she, a vicar's daughter, is in the precarious position of resisting his tantalizing advances. How Bell earned his wicked reputation is clear; the surprise is how much more there is to him than the gossip sheets could possibly reveal. Now every moment with this dangerously desirable man puts Laura's good name at risk-and promises pleasure unlike any she has ever known ... 

This book was absolutely fantastic! I LOVED the characters and I'm pretty sure my new book boyfriend may be The Earl of Bellingham or "Bell." It's a fun regency romp.

Vicky Dreiling writes for Grand Central Publishing and has over five regency stories and a few more in this wicked earl series!

To stalk her like I am...ahem....go to: Visit her at: http://www.vickydreiling.com/


Another author that caught my attention...Nicole Jordan. I heart her. As in, if I ever met her, I'd probably hunt her down and stalk her in person. That's not creepy, right? 

Lover Be Mine is the sequel to Princess Charming and is hands down one of my favorite regency reads of the year!

As the wickedly seductive Wilde cousins seek true love by taking a page from history’s legendary love stories, Lord Jack Wilde plays a determined Romeo courting an enchanting Juliet.
 
The last thing Sophie Fortin expects at a masquerade ball is a dazzling kiss from a pirate. Her desire quickly falters when she learns that her masked gentleman is devilishly scandalous Lord Jack, a member of the captivating Wilde clan—and a man she’s forbidden to acknowledge. But when Jack begins a breathtaking seduction, Sophie can barely resist.

Jack never imagined that the daughter of his family’s mortal enemy would awaken such fierce passion within him—until one unforgettable kiss changes his mind forever. Soon, Jack is hell-bent on winning Sophie’s hand, going so far as to abduct her to save her from marrying a rival nobleman. Determined to woo Sophie and her unyielding parents, Jack is faced with the one decision he’d sworn never to make. The secret heir to a prince, Jack has spurned his royal heritage for years . . . but for Sophie he’ll risk all to turn a legacy of heartbreak into love ever after.

I am obsessed...OBSESSED I TELL YOU! This book had it ALL! I laughed, I cried, I read it on the stupid plane meaning I looked like an insane person while reading. I promise it's a fun read. Nicole Jordan does such an amazing job with her world buildling. This is a read you won't regret. I paid full price for it. I would pay full price for every single one of her books--they are that good. The Romeo and Juliet twist was hysterically accurate. Do yourself  a favor, go buy the book, and then stalk her right along with me:

http://nicolejordanauthor.com/

That's it for now! I'm hoping to add some fantastic more titles in my next post. What are you all reading? Comment and share book ideas! Maybe I'll pick up one of your suggestions next! 

Romance and Murder!

When I read, I love a good mystery but....I need romance. How about you? As my fingers turn the pages I want the drama, the suspense and the good old loving.

How much loving?

Well, that depends on the story. Is it a romance story? A murder mystery? Or a romantic suspense? I think the genre dictates the heat level. In the mystery I want my detectives to be rugged, but not too handsome and they must have a soft side to them. And when he thinks he has the case and the woman all figured out, I want it to implode.

In a romance, I want the hero if he's not already there to trust, understand and respect his heroine. Because without trust and respect there is no love.

Now in a romantic suspense, I want the romance and the mystery to build until it peaks within minutes of each other. Until that moment when all is resolved. I'm talking the last five pages of the book. There's nothing quite like sitting on the edge of your seat guessing and than boom the end comes into focus.

To me reading is the best gift I've ever been given. Through the pages of books I've traveled through space, time, war, love and friendship. No movie can ever bring a book to life like the book.

Do you prefer to read, watch television or go to a movie?

Everything You Need to Know About Writing Fiction, You Learned in High School.

The more books and short stories I write, the more I convince myself that a well-written novel isn’t that different from a high school paper. Consider the following rules that are drilled into our heads in most every American high school English Lit. class:

· Research your topic.
· The opening line should hook your reader.
· State your thesis statement early on.
· The body of your paper should support your thesis. 
· Give strong examples.
· In a persuasive essay (debate), the speaker can sway the audience’s opinion by empathizing with the opposing argument.
· The conclusion should wrap up all the main points listed in the introduction.

Research your topic:  In a high school essay, you have to do some research on the topic for which you are writing, especially if you know absolutely nothing about it. Fiction is the same. You can try to draw every detail out of your imagination, but eventually you are going to come to a point where you need to look something up. Even fantasy authors—who often get away with making and breaking their own rules—eventually have to pause to look up the proper term for a double-edge sword. Yes, fiction is fiction and magic can follow any set of rules you desire. But in my experience, the more grounded your story is in real hard facts, the more three-dimensional and believable it is. A story that is purely imagination often reads like a child’s fairy tale.

The opening line should hook your reader:  This is pretty self-explanatory. Everyone who’s ever written anything knows this rule by now. But for some reason, we fiction writers often forget what a good hook is—or perhaps we put too much pressure on the idea. But remember what a hook was in high school? A quote, a question, a fact/statistic, a shocking revelation, a funny joke, a general statement—basically any kind of ice-breaker that isn’t boring.

State your thesis statement early on:  I know this one sounds weird. Fiction writers don’t use thesis statements! Or do we? Think of your “thesis” as the main story goal (or main plot) of your book. What’s the hero’s main goal? What is the overall “thesis” of your book about? Whatever it is, the reader should know (or at least have a damn good idea) by the end of the first chapter. Why so soon? Why not in chapter three? Because most readers, when browsing books to buy, will read no more than the first chapter as a sample. Actually, you want to hook your reader right in the first sentence, be we already covered hooks. Assuming you did your job and wrote a gripping opening line, the reader will go a little further and read the rest of the chapter. But you don’t want to lose them after that! You want to hold on firmly to their curiosity! You want to get them to buy the book and read chapter two! And that is why you need to state your thesis as early as possible—to draw the reader in to the point of the story. Nothing irks me more than wasting moments of my life reading a book that seemingly has no point. If I’m three or four chapters in and still have no clue what the book is about, I will put it down and never pick it up again. I have better things to do.

The body of the paper should support the thesis:  This sounds self-explanatory—the body of the story should support the main plot, right? Simple enough. Only, it can be extremely easy to deviate off onto a side road (aka subplot) and get lost in a web of plot threads that you never meant to visit in the first place. Yes, weaving many layers into a story is a good thing AS LONG AS you don’t lose sight of your main story goal. If you lack the fineness to tie all those layers together and arrive on the other side with a completed plot, then you’re better off following the rules of K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid).

Give strong examples:  In a high school paper, we do this to support our thesis in the best way possible. In fiction, we aim to use strong scenes and even stronger sentences not just to move the plot forward in the best way possible, but also to invoke the strongest emotional response possible from the reader. If any section of our manuscript is slow, boring, weak, or doesn’t build on the plot, it gets cut.

Empathize with the opponent:  In persuasion essays, this is just good debate tactic (Yes, testing cosmetics on mice ensures it is safe for human use, however…). But in fiction it is just good story telling. Give your bad guy a moment in the spotlight. Give him a little redeeming quality. Watch your readers’ hearts break a little when he’s finally defeated. There is no opponent more memorable than the kind readers can relate or sympathize with. Another great option is to give the sidekick a moment in the sun, devote a chapter to the guy who doesn’t get the girl, tell the story from the point of the demon, etc.

The conclusion should wrap up all the main points listed in the introduction:  There is nothing more annoying than an ending that doesn’t answer all the lingering questions that began in the first few chapters. And if we’re talking about a series, it’s even worse! Don’t believe me? Ask any reader. Go ahead. I’ll wait. Nothing is more frustrating then wondering what happened to Bob when he disappeared in Book 2 and was never mentioned again, especially if Bob was a major player in Book 1. Those lingering questions make it feel like the author got lazy in the last book and half-assed the ending with no poetic detail once so ever. DO NOT slack off on your conclusion! The reader NEEDS that sense of closure. Unless you enjoy angry reviews and threatening emails.

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Post by

Danielle Ravencraft

http://ravencraftromance.com