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    Updates, updates, updates …

    So I’ve finally finished updating the Web site. I’ve added the new mass market covers, tweaked the frequently asked questions and other features, and posted some character quotes from Jinx on the Links & Fun page.

    If there’s some other feature about the Bigtime books or writing or whatever you’d like to see on the Web site, leave me a comment here. I’ll try to post another excerpt or two from Jinx a little closer to the release date (Sept. 2, less than six months away now. Where has the first third of the year gone already?).

    Please forgive the typos. I’m sure there are many. But for now, enjoy! :buttercup:

  • Here comes the Contest Bunny …

    24 Comments

    I can’t believe Easter is next weekend. It seems like yesterday we were celebrating Valentine’s Day. Where does the time go? Shakes head.

    But I promised you guys I’d do another contest around Easter — so here it is. I’m going to give away signed copies of Karma Girl and Hot Mama, and Karma Girl and Hot Mama T-shirts — four prizes total.

    All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post and tell me what your favorite thing about Easter is. You can also post about the contest on your blog if you want to, but it’s not a requirement. I’ll announce the winners on Good Friday, March 21.

    My favorite thing about Easter? This is a toughie, since it’s my second favorite holiday (after Thanksgiving). But I’d have to say coloring eggs with my mom. We still do it, mainly because somebody once told my mom it’s bad luck not to color eggs for Easter. Every year, we drag out the food coloring and vinegar and haphazardly color a dozen or so eggs. The colors always run and streak and never look as pretty as they’re supposed to, but we still have fun doing it. And that’s the most important thing.

    So spill — what do you love about Easter? :bubbles:

  • 863 and counting …

    13 Comments

    Finished Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs. It’s the second in her Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series about a car mechanic who can shapeshift and become a coyote.

    In this book, Mercy’s friend, the vampire Stefan, asks her to help him deal with a demon who has possessed another vampire/sorcerer. The demon is killing people, and Stefan needs it to stop, so the local group of vampires are not exposed to the human population. Mercy agrees to help, and the demon comes after her and her loved ones.

    I liked Moon Called, the first book in the series, but I enjoyed Blood Bound even more. Maybe it was because I was familiar with Briggs’ world this time around. Or maybe because Mercy has a lot more to do in this book. She decides to go after the demon herself, and she takes logical, appropriate steps to hunt it down — something she has only a few hours to do before the demon starts killing her friends. I enjoyed the faster pacing in this one, and I thought the emotional stakes were a lot higher for Mercy.  

    I’m also interested to see exactly what Mercy’s powers as a “walker” or shapeshifter are. So far, she can talk to ghosts and certain magics don’t affect her like they do werewolves and other creatures. Everyone keeps telling Mercy how powerful she is, but nobody will tell her what her powers are — they only give her small nuggets of information at a time. A little annoying, but I get that Briggs is doing that to keep people hooked on the series. Slow reveals really are the best, but as a reader/viewer, I hate waiting for them. I want all the books/secrets to be out right now. :rolleyes:

    One thing I didn’t particularly care for was the love triangle between Mercy, Sam, and Adam. I know a lot of people love the interaction between the characters. It’s well done and realistic, but as a general rule, I just don’t like love triangles. Supposedly, the triangle gets resolved in the third book, Iron Kissed, which was recently released. I’ll be reading it — after I whittle down my TBR pile some more.

    So, thumbs up.

    Up next: Not sure. Something from the aforementioned TBR pile.

  • Coming soon …

    Okay, I finalized my order for the Jinx bookmarks this morning. It usually takes the company about two weeks to print and ship the bookmarks to me, so I’m guessing they’ll show up on my doorstep around March 24 or so.

    When I get the bookmarks, I’ll post on how you can get some freebies. Or, if you’re one of the folks going to the Romantic Times convention this year, I’ll have bookmarks on hand there during the big book signing on April 19.

    Stay tuned! :ww:

  • Dragging along …

    4 Comments

    Does anybody else feel really draggy and lethargic today? Or is it just me? The spring time change always messes with me, especially this year, since it’s so, so early. There’s still a week of winter left, but now, it’s going to be daylight until eight o’clock. It just seems wrong.

    Or maybe I’m feeling tired because I’ve been sick for the last week. Seriously sick. Coughing, sneezing, my-fever’s-so-high-it-feels-like-my-eyeballs-are-on-fire sick. I was so sick and looked so bad my significant other told me I resembled a reanimated corpse. A reanimated corpse — yep, that’s just the thing a gal wants to hear from her honey. On the bright side, I suppose the phrase dead sexy could also have been applied to me — with more emphasis on the dead part. 😉

    Whether it’s the time change or not, all I want to do is curl up in bed and sleep for a week. But I’ve got Jinx copy edits to work on and mail back this week, along with half a dozen other things I need to do. Ah, the glamorous life of an author.