On the Shelves!

Etirv, one of our regular commenters here, sent me this picture from her Barnes and Noble in Hawaii! Thanks so much for the pic. I'm delighted to see that STROKE OF GENIUS has made it to paradise.

But Stroke of Genius isn't the only new book on the shelves. Here are a few other great new stories from some friends of mine.



Christie Craig's Shut Up and Kiss me is a guaranteed laugh riot. Christie always makes me smile. If you haven't tried her, now's your chance.










Isn't this the most beautiful cover? Cindy Holby's new medieval Breath of Heaven is sure to leave you breathless.










Remember the American Title Winner, Marie-Claude Bourque? She was featured here on my blog a couple times and now paranormal fans will thrill to her debut title Ancient Whispers.







And of course, there's my STROKE OF GENIUS. So far the reviews have been good. Here's a sampling:

"This amusing historical romance is a classic gender war tale of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object. Fans will enjoy the love between the Charles and the Thames as Grace proves Crispin the genius is a dope when it comes to love." ~ Genre-Go-Round Reviews

"Wickedly enjoyable!" ~ RT BOOKReviews

But the most important reviews are the ones from my readers. If you read Stroke of Genius, please post a review on Amazon or B & N or wherever you hang online. Positive or negative, I always love to hear from readers. And if you enjoyed STROKE OF GENIUS, please tell your friends.

Thanks so much and happy reading!

Well, we know STROKE OF GENIUS is in Hawaii. Where have you seen it?

Super Stocking Stuffer Sale!

Dorchester is having a super blow-out STOCKING STUFFER SALE!

What happens when an artistic duchess mistakes Her Majesty's spy for her next nude model? He drives her to distraction, of course!

For a limited time, you can buy DISTRACTING THE DUCHESS for only $2.99! This is the book that got a nod from RT BookReviews Reviewers Choice, Bookbuyers Best and CORWA Award of Excellence. I call it 'a Victorian romp' and it's just plain fun!

And here's the best news. The sale includes more than my book! You can also get Christie Craig's DIVORCED DESPERATE AND DELICIOUS, Angie Fox's THE ACCIDENTAL DEMON SLAYER, Alissa Johnson's TEMPTING FATE, A TASTE OF MAGIC from Tracy Madison, TEKGIRL by AJ Menden, Elisabeth Naughton's STOLEN FURY, Helen Scott Taylor's THE MAGIC KNOT, and BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK by Elissa Wilds!

Don't you just love a bargain? Shop from home and pay less than 1/2 the cover price! (Even the Anti-Shopper can get behind this deal!) Be sure to order by December 16th to ensure Christmas delivery.

Ho, ho, ho!

PS. Today I'm at THE BOOK OASIS, 311 Main ST, Stoneham, MA signing all my titles. 10:30am-12:30pm. Of course, there'll be chocolate! If you're not in New England and your heart is set on a signed copy, THE BOOK OASIS can hook you up at 10% off. They ship anywhere!

White Christmas? Yay or Nay

I'm guest blogging over at InMyHumbleOpinion today, sharing an excerpt from A CHRISTMAS BALL and giving you a chance to divulge what YOU really want for Christmas! Commenters at IMHO are entered in the monthly drawing for the gift basket filled with signed books from me, Jennifer Ashley, Christie Craig, Carrie Lofty and TJ Bennett PLUS a $20 Amazon gift certificate! Hope to see you there!

When we moved to Boston in 2007, we knew we were heading back into snow country. It didn't daunt us. We've wintered in Iowa where "white-outs" can make it impossible to see the house across the street. In Minneapolis, where wind chill is the big story. In Wyoming where the wind howls like a demon and in Park City, Utah where snow starts falling in late October and doesn't leave completely till late May. (No joke. We had 12 mortal feet of the white excrement to deal with that year, but I should have expected it since Park City is an international ski destination!)

We know how to do snow.

And we know we'd rather not unless we have to. So we arranged our life in New England so we can enjoy looking at the white stuff, but don't have to do anything with it unless we want to. Our condo has staff that takes care of the sidewalks. We live a short walk to the Boston T. If we don't want to drive in the snow, we don't. But we can make snowmen in the park, watch our terrier leap from drift to drift, and appreciate the frozen beauty of the Mystic River.

So this week when our condo staff staked out put out the waist high sticks (and oh, yeah, the snow can get that deep here) to indicate where the walks should be shoveled, I started humming "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!"

Do you live in snow country? Have a blizzard story to share? I remember one time in NC we got 8 inches and it shut down the city for a week! Do you dream of a "white Christmas?"

Home Again!

RWA in DC was a great time, but it's grand to be home in Boston! I'm sorry I didn't post while I was there. The Marriott charged $12.95 a day for an internet connection, even for its wifi in the lobby and it was a matter of principle not to pay for something Holiday Inn Express includes for free. (Especially when you consider the ridiculous room rate we were charged by the Marriott! And I talked to a couple authors who paid the $12.95 for a connection but dropped it after one day because it was so spotty.)Anyway, I'll give you the rundown now.

I had countless fangirl moments--rubbing shoulders with the likes of Sherry Thomas, Tessa Dare, Madeline Hunter, Elizabeth Hoyt, Jo Beverley--all my favorites! I'm hoping to have several of them on as blog guests soon.

Meeting my new agent (Natasha Kern) and her assistant Becky was a real treat. Natasha is a real dynamo and I think we'll work well together.

I spent some time with the Lollies (Ladies of Leisure!) CL Wilson, Christie Craig, Jade Lee, Colleen Thompson (who was up for a RITA in a field crowded with all the big names in the romantic suspense genre and she fit right in with them!) Angie Fox, Cindy Holby, Bonnie Vanak, Natale Stenzel, Anna DeStefano, and newcomer Caroline Fyffe. I also had a lovely, tear-inducing chat with Diane Stacy (VP of Direct Sales for Dorchester) about life, love, books and everything in general. She remains one of my favorite people of all those I've met since I first published.

My humor workshop went off well. It really helped that my mom gave me something to start with. I was talking to her before I left and confessed that I was a little worried about giving the workshop because comedy is hard and I've seen humor workshops really fall flat. She said, "Nonsense! You have so much to share. Just go down there and elude confidence!" My workshop attendees thought that was a real hoot, typical motherly advice and a wonderful example of malapropism all at the same time! Thanks, Mom.

A big part of what made my conference special was getting to know my roommate, May Boonpitak. May is from Thailand and we first met a few years ago when MAIDENSONG (my debut Diana Groe title) came out. She'd read it and made a point of finding me at RT to tell me she loved it. She's a delightful person and it was fascinating to learn more about how people live in her country (She thinks Americans are mean to kick their kids out of the house when they reach adulthood. She shares a home with her parents, sister and nephew. No one ever has to live alone.) Anyway, I loved sharing my 'down time' with her.

And now I can't wait to start doing what my agent says is my Prime Directive. WRITE MY FINGERS OFF!

P.S.--Voting is still open for my STROKE OF GENIUS Name a Character Contest. Everyone who votes is entered into a drawing to win a WHOLE BOX OF BOOKS! Please help me name an important character in my current WIP by casting your vote today!

Christie Craig's Gotcha!

One of the richest blessings of becoming an author has been getting to know other authors. They are the wackiest, most brilliant, and most talented people I've ever met. And the most caring.

When I was diagnosed with colon cancer last year, I received tons of support from the writing community. They sent emails, calls of encouragement and my sweet Eastside RWA buddies even sent flowers (love you gals!).

But Christie Craig went one better. She sent me one of her books.

To be fair, she warned me. But I took DIVORCED, DESPERATE & DELICIOUS to the hospital with me anyway. And nearly split my stiches!

This girl is seriously funny. Now Christie has a new book out called GOTCHA and she's still in a giving mood.

Today, June 2nd, at Killer Fiction Christie Craig will be giving away a signed copy of GOTCHA! along with a Christie Craig notebook and a pen. Plus, she's guest blogging over at Writing Playground as well as WickedAuthors and she'll be giving away the same prizes over there.

So pop over and visit and get ready to laughs. And . . . that’s right, there’s more. On June 8th she'll be at the Book Addict at PopSyndicate with a funny post, and offering prizes as well. Then to win a basket of books and goodies, pop over to Dorchester Publishing and click onto the special feature section to get info on that contest.

I promise you'll love Christie Craig's GOTCHA. But if you're having abdominal surgery consider yourself warned!

Mr. Romance

Each year Dorchester Publishing sponsors the Mr. Romance Contest. All week long, the contestants mix with the convention attendees and try to garner as much support as they can. Then on Saturday, we have the the "Pose Down." For part of the show, the cover models dress as heroes from Leisure Book and LoveSpell novels. This is Eric Trugila, the model who portrayed my Lucian from VEXING THE VISCOUNT.

Eric is studying to be an EMT. When I told him he wanted to be a real life hero, he said he only hoped he'd get to emergencies soon enough to be a hero.



This is Franco D'Angelo on the right. He's a professional wrestler when he's not vying for the Mr. Romance title.



The pic on the left is Constantine. He's from Greece, with a devastatingly attractive accent. He is interested in body building and philosophy. Don't you just hate it when the guy has prettier hair than you do?








Meet Stephan. He has a really big . . . sword, doesn't he? He is portraying Jade Lee's Dragon hero.







Jimmy is an All-American boy who spends his time panning for gold in Columbia (I am not making this up!).






"Well, howdy ma'am!" This cowboy is Charles Paz. He won the competition and let me tell you why. Of course, he's handsome and he has trouble finding jackets that will fit over his muscles because they're so big. But what Charles really has going for him is his personality. He's funny and thoughtful and very sweet.


During the Pose Down, there's a segment where each of the contestants gets a chance to romance one of the female models. Most of the guys went for the dipping kiss or swooping the girl into their arms to carry her off, but Charles took off his jacket, draped it around her shoulders and kissed her on the hand. It was the essence of romance, an unspoken desire to protect as well as possess. It reminded me of something my DH would do. When Charles won, I was on my feet cheering!



The lucky girls with Charles are Erin Galloway, Dorchester's marketing guru, and Leah Hultenschmidt, my own fabulous editor. Look for Charles on a Leisure Books cover sometime in the future!

Special "Thank you" to my friend Christie Craig. In addition to being a hysterically funny romance author, she's a kick-butt photographer. These pics are all hers. Look for her next title GOTCHA in June but you can pre-order it today to make sure you don't miss out by clicking right here! She sent me her DIVORCED, DESPERATE AND DATING to read while I was recovering from cancer surgery and I nearly split my incision laughing!