Quilts and Books

This quilt makes me happy. I think it's the bright colors. I'm having fun watching the rainbow emerge each time I add a set of rows. Next up purple and purple/blue. It's going to be graphic and dramatic when it's finished. And if this quilt makes you happy, you can own it by being the high bidder in May at the Brenda Novak auction for diabetes research.

A couple of you have already left a comment at my Oh My! post from 2/25. Yes, I won the "It Happened One Season" contest. Sponsored by Avon/Harper Collins , the contest allowed readers to submit plot suggestions for an anthology to be published in 2011. You can read more about it here on the official web page of the contest. Voting ended on Saturday and it showed that I had a healthy lead. But the web page didn't formally announce me as winner until this morning. Shortly after that I got a lovely email from Mary Balogh , one of the anthology's authors, and the woman whose books got me back into reading romance again. She congratulated me on my win and told me that she was "thrilled" that my entry had won. She went on to say she looked forward to writing my story. In fact, she's already written a quarter of it. Excuse me. Who cares about the prize money? I'm going to step aside for a few minutes and have a loud, embarrassing, squeeing fangirl moment...

A few years back I spent a grand total of $6.00 and bought a small stack of old traditional Regencies by Joan Wolf, all published in the '80s. Joan Wolf (link provided, but her site is currently offline) wrote a couple of my favorite trads, including The American Duchess and His Lordship's Mistress . The ones I bought were her earliest books. This particular book, The Counterfeit Marriage , was her very first. I'm sorry to say that I could not bring myself to finish it. TCM was published February 1980. Perhaps the date explains why the book begins with a rape of the heroine by the hero. When Catherine seems to get over her anger with James by p. 26, I knew I wouldn't go much further. I did skim through the rest of the book. There's some interesting period stuff there. The book takes place after Waterloo. James had been instrumental in some of the diplomatic stuff after the war, but he leaves Vienna dissatisfied with the political situation and what he sees as a be...

It's that time of year again and I need to get a quilt made for the Brenda Novak Auction to benefit diabetes research. Both Brenda & I have sons the same age who have Type 1. I am thrilled to participate for the second straight year. This year I'm thinking "rainbow." And here's a sneak preview of my work in progress. I expect to have the top completed by the end of the weekend. You should go check out the auction site . There's already some cool stuff posted.

I have been a fan of Robin D. Owens' Heart series since I first read Heart Thief some 6 or 7 years ago. That book was actually the second in the series, but that was the one I started with. Owens writes fantasy/futuristic books. The Heart books have a strong paranormal element. They take place in the future on a distant planet called Celta. The inhabitants of Celta are descendants of a group of humans who landed there in the distant past. Being on Celta caused the growth of the humans' psi powers. Over the years I've found this series to be engaging as much for the creative and complex world-building Owens has done as for the romances contained therein. The main society is an aristocratic one, so the idea of "First Families" and "Grand Families" would strike a chord if you're fond of English-set historicals. The belief system has rituals surrounding the sun and moons of Celta that remind me of pre-Christian Celtic beliefs. People who have enhanced ...

5. Lead Me On by Victoria Dahl . I have to admit I wasn't sure that I was going to like this book. I read some reviews that seemed to over-emphasize Jane's snobbiness and so I thought I wouldn't like the heroine. But instead I was interested in what made her tick, how long she would be able to maintain tight control with so many pressures on her, and how she would finally learn to resolve her past with the woman she wanted to be. I found her to be very interesting and very human. And I also liked Chase. He comes across as a normal guy who was very patient and persistent. Yet he was not without issues of his own. I found them to be a believable couple and it made for an entertaining read. I am glad I decided to read it after all. 4. Lord Wraybourne's Betrothed by Jo Beverley . This was Ms. Beverley's first published book (1988) and it was recently reprinted. It's a sweet traditional regency. Lord Wraybourne needs to marry and he chooses the daughter of a wealth...